Why parent taxis are perfectly fine – even though they are annoying

Opinion

For my first trip to school, taking a taxi from my parents was never an option. I come from the country, and the elementary school was exactly one street away. For cars, the route was a frequently monitored 30 km/h zone anyway, and the sidewalk was very wide. So it was quite worry-free for my working mother to let me drive to school – I knew the residents, and somehow everyone in the village looks out for each other. My mom wasn’t worried that I wouldn’t make it.

But many parents now see things differently. According to a survey by the Foundation of more than 1,000 parents, 23 percent drive their child to school by car at least three times a week in spring and summer, and 28 percent in autumn and winter. The so-called parent taxis.

There are many reasons to criticize this practice: The cars clog up the streets – sometimes it leads to considerable traffic jams. A number of schools have therefore issued a ban that prohibits parents from dropping off their children in certain areas around the school. Where it is permitted, residents complain about the accumulation of cars. Often, parent taxis have no choice but to block driveways or stop on bike paths – especially in cities, the infrastructure simply does not allow for anything else. “I’m leaving soon,” is all they say.

Parent taxis yes, but please no butler

I have also observed at least one avoidable problem: If you bring the children to the door of the school or daycare center, then you don’t have to accompany them into the building. They are not completely immature. You have to do it like at the drop-off at the airport: stop, open the door, let the child out, close the door, drive off.

The rest is completely fine. Basically, I can understand any parent who doesn’t have the nerve to leave their child to their own devices from the front door. When I moved from the village to the big city, I was pretty overwhelmed by the traffic in Hamburg, even though I was 23 at the time. An incredible amount happens in a very short space of time. Not accompanying a child seems negligent to me. And if the school isn’t within walking distance, you just take the car.

What about public transport, you might object at this point: True, of course the child could take the bus or the train. But the kids have to get there somehow. From my apartment, that would be two traffic lights and a four-lane road with truck traffic – and I live close to a bus stop. So that too: a considerable risk. Also: show me a school bus that isn’t completely overcrowded. A good start to the day looks different.

But back to the way to school, because the accident figures support my opinion. According to them, around 27,000 children were injured in traffic in Germany last year. According to the Federal Statistical Office, 6 to 14-year-olds are most likely to have accidents on their bikes, and mostly in the morning on weekdays. So that must be the way to school, if I’m not mistaken.

Traffic education is still necessary

The crux of the matter: This is a chicken-and-egg problem. Christina Tillmann, CEO of the ADAC Foundation, also warns against this. She says: “Children develop a sense of road traffic and its dangers as active participants, not in the back seat of a car. Walking or cycling to school is an important daily training exercise for moving safely and independently in traffic.”

However, this statement contains some ideals: the route to school must be such that it can be covered on foot or by bike. It also takes a lot of time to accompany the child on this journey. As an autodidact, you are unlikely to learn how to behave in traffic – especially not in the city, where many adults see a red pedestrian light as a recommendation and children then happily follow along.

It is better to spend this usually hectic part of the day comfortably in the car, where you can spend a little time with your children, shielded from the noisy traffic, before starting the day. With one rule for the sake of kindness: only let them get out, but please don’t act like a butler like in the picture. That would test the patience of other road users on the congested streets too much.

When it comes to road safety education, the ADAC Foundation is of course right. But you don’t have to do it in the hectic mornings; you can take your time and explain to children what’s going on out there. If at some point you get the impression that your child is able to correctly assess dangers, you can always leave the taxi at home.