How far should my child have to walk to a school bus stop?
There are no statutory limits, prescribed by the Welsh Assembly Government, for distances between home and designated pick up/drop off points. The Learner Travel Operational Guidance notes; “Whilst the duty to make travel arrangements does not mean door to door service, arrangements that anticipate a child being expected to walk an unreasonably long distance to catch a public service bus, or a bus journey that ended an unreasonably long distance from the school are unlikely to be suitable. Again, the maximum distance will depend on a range of circumstances, including the age of a child, their individual needs and the nature of the routes they are expected to walk to pick up or set down points.” Many authorities have adopted a walking distance of 1 mile as being a reasonable limit for learners to walk to or from a pick up or drop off point. The Council has endeavoured to limit the distance to no more than 400 metres. However, this is not always achievable and a balance must be struck be
