Talk About Town: Why Do You Drive Your Student to School?

This week is National School Bus Safety Week and according to a press release from the Livingston County Sheriff’s Department, school buses are the "most environmentally friendly and safest choice for transporting students."

They are also a way to help reduce congestion around schools, according to the press release.

Many parents, however, still choose to skip the bus and transport their own children to and from school on a regular basis. 

Hartland resident Kim Porath is one of those parents.

With one child at Farms Intermediate and one at the high school, Porath says she has been dropping off and picking up her children for the past five years with reasons being issues on the bus and time factors.

“Why have your kids on the bus for 45 minutes to an hour when you live five minutes away,” she said.

Calling that time “unnecessary” Porath chooses instead to deal with what can sometimes be "frustrating" congestion at both schools.

Some of the more dangerous moments also come from parents who choose not to follow the rules, according to Porath, who encourages parents who drive to pay attention to things such as:

• Not ignoring school officials trying to direct traffic.
• Pulling to the end of the line before dropping off.
• Not parking on the exit side of the lane during pick-up.

Porath admits that if less parents drove their kids to school, their would be less congestion. Due to her flexible work schedule, however, Porath says she will continue to drive her children so they are able sleep later in the morning and are home earlier in afternoon.

So, Hartland Patch wants to know: Why do you drive your student to school? Should there be more directions and enforced rules in school parking lots to help with safety and congestion?

Tell us in comments.

In this Thursday morning feature, we want to hear your opinions about certain topics making headlines. We'll be looking for your feedback in the comment section weekly. And we want to know what the Talk About Town is in your circles. Email Tatum at tatum.ryan@patch.com and it could be a topic of a future Talk About Town.