Dondare wrote:
Have you noticed the extraordinary reduction in traffic during the school holidays? How many school runs really need a car? Most are less than a mile.
Even the daily commute to work does not normally involve a motorway, I don't know what the average commute is but I'd bet that half are under five miles. Have you done research into this?
Oh - I dunno.
My own commute's long. My wife's a bit further on. We choose to live here as we love it. I could not bear to live in a 'burb either. But our work colleague's also commute fair distances. Our jobs are not "work from home" as such but I am sure many admin type ones could be on occasion.
Our kids use the school bus services or travel with our teenage drivers on heavy school bag days.
Two of my sisters and one my brothers live in the Bolton/Manchester loop.
Another reason why I report up much of what gives down in the 'burbs to our South.
OK my point? The two sisters down there are teachers. One works at a school which runs a bus service. Now this school's a nice "academic orientated school". She tells me kids attending this school come from as far as Preston and Rochdale and Warrington to be taught there. She finds that "amazing" when she knows for fact that those areas have schools of equal status (and fees
)
Off topic
rant! Take cover! 
She did used to teach at a "sink comp" prior to landing this job which she wanted as she felt herself to be "drowning in much harder slog but which could not yield any "government targets". Her sanity could not cope so she jumped ship from her "ideals" because she needed "self protection" )
Now Jazz's own route to work does not involve a motorway - but she could not do on bicycle because of the weight of marked exercise books and various lesson plans despite what she calls a "generous time table and quiet area to do all the marking/lesson preparation" At her old state comp - she indulged in what she calls the "gimmicky catchee attention but fail miserably with remedial class" style which required many "props" and "differentiated work sheets" whatever they are. But the gist is that it made a commute by bicycle rather difficult.
Jazz's commute is 6 miles along the high volume "direct way" and 8 miles if she chooses a different but less congested route.
My other sister (Ju-Ju) who also teaches similar subjects to Jazz (so - called because she plays brass instruments in a jazz band
She's not that bad now but I can tell you that when she practised as a child - was just one awful din
) but Ju-ju works at a school in Altrincham area. She has to use the M60 to get there or failing that .. A580/over Warburton toll bridge and via "country lanes"
She says her catchment's from a 5 mile radius but prone to the dreaded school run. Her commute's 11 miles each way using the motorway and 15 miles if she goes the "scenic way".
But with school books, long distance and bicycle routes which would take them along lonely "off road routes" prone to dangers for quite attractive women (and I have to acknowledge that my sisters are all quite pretty enough in feature in sincerity and not because I'd be "burnt toast" to say otherwise in public
)
These girls are not alone either. Most of their colleagues live some distance away and they even note on teacher exam meets that their colleagues are also travellling over 15 miles to work.
Sadly Dondare - lot of folk want to live in nice leafy burbs or in the country outskirts of out towns. People recruit "best for job" and it's not always possible to up sticks and move to the town where the employer's based. Julie (We call her Ju-Ju in the family ) knows of someone who lives in Wilmslow and works in Oldham. The person just does not want to live in Oldham but likes the job there.
I fear the norm. We cannot all live near our work. Firms do fold. Hospitals have been laying off staff too. We cannot just sell house and buy another where we find the next job either. What if that job then becomes redundant and we then end up finding work back where we started? Given the spiralling cost of property - not an option really.
I could sell my house here but to buy something similar would require a new mortgage at current price.
As for the school runs?
Oh - we have the problem of school books and various heavy kits on occasion.
Parents moving out of catchment area but keeping child at the desired school
Cheating to get child in preferred school by renting house in catchment - then moving back "home" when sorted
But commuting in car all the same
People are also scared of kiddy fiddlers per media hype. I fear worsened all the more by what happened in Portugal recently too. From fostering and adoption - I am more than aware that the dangers are closer to home in reality with the Maddy McCann/Sarah Payne etc cases being few and far between. But these cases when they occur hardly help when base panic instinct seems to be a "stampede in a car to school"
Dondare - BMA today calls for "over indulging kids or killing by "kindness"" to be classed as "neglect". I am inclined to be more in agreement on this one. We are indeed running serious dangers to human health, society and welfare by refusing loosen the toddler reins within reason.
My wife's family might be large - but I think my own more than matches But my family's not as crazy as hers ::hehe: 
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