Taxi ride to kindergarten...advice please, its causing huge conflicts

[britfish]

DD will be in 1/2 day kindergarten next year. After school she will go back to her current preschool for the rest of the day. The problem is our school does not provide a mid day bus, so transportation is the parents responsibility. Our preschool uses a taxi (15 passenger van) that you can pay to drive your child. It is less than a mile of a ride....but....no car seats because it is a taxi. I am worried sick about this, DH says it will be fine. The taxi has never had an accident or complaint in the 6 yrs. they have been doing it.
Both of us work full time so we can't leave school at lunch to drive her so we are really stuck. DH says it has to work, I am just worried. What do I do??

[BW1426]

Does the van have 3 point seatbelts?

[britfish]

I'm not sure, I just asked the director about car seats and she said they do not install car seats in the taxi. I didn't think to ask about what type of belts they have.

[chickabiddy]

I would absolutely not put a preschooler in a 15-passenger van without a carseat. I'm sorry. I know that's easier for me to write than for you to deal with. Is there a parent in either program you could pay to drive and keep a seat installed in her car? When I was a SAHM with one child I would have jumped at the chance to earn a little cash driving another child if I was already going that way anyhow.

[BW1426]

If this is your only option, I would consider putting her in a lbb if the seat backs are tall enough and there are 3 point seat belts. I'd think with proper training a kindergardener could manage a lbb all by oneself.

[chickabiddy]

Pre-K. I'd really try hard to find another option. Those 15-passenger vans scare me.

[BW1426]

Pre-K. I'd really try hard to find another option. Those 15-passenger vans scare me.

OP did say 1/2 day kingergarten. Which I am making an assumption, but to me that means 5 yo. Not my first choice, but much better if that's their only option.

[chickabiddy]

Oh, yes, you read better than I do. Sorry (and sorry, OP). I'm still leery. I could maybe see a backless in a car, but not in a van like that. I am not trying to be bratty, but to support the OP that this does not seem okay and to try to find another option.

[britfish]

yes, she is 5 but a peanut, only 32-33lbs.. We were hoping our district would change to full day program this year but just found out they are staying 1/2 day.
Thank you for your honest replies. I wish I knew a SAHM that would do it, but I am just not in those circles but I am going to try to see if I can think of someone. We pay the taxi $3 a day so maybe I could find someone that would like a little extra money.
I am hoping to hear some replies that tell me it would be ok for a 1/2 mile trip three weeks out of a month (I can drive her one week a month).

[ketchupqueen]

Of course many 15 pass. vans have lap-only belts in some positions, and no headrests in many seats.

I think paying another parent to drive is a good idea.

Is there any other option for childcare?

[Gypsy]

I am hoping to hear some replies that tell me it would be ok for a 1/2 mile trip three weeks out of a month

In this group of highly educated, safety conscious parents and Certified Child Passenger Safety Technicians, you won't find anyone to say that.

I'd find another solution.

Can you call the preschool and ask them if they could think of any parents in your daughters class who might be willing to pick her up at school on their way to drop their own child off, who would like to earn a little extra money - maybe someone who lives near the school?

Another option is private kindergarten (around here there are a lot of them in the preschools, but they max at kindergarten), but you'd have to pay for that, and the other half of the day as "extended day" - but at least it would all be in the same building, then next year you wouldn't have this problem.

[bobandjess99]

Of course many 15 pass. vans have lap-only belts in some positions, and no headrests in many seats.

I think paying another parent to drive is a good idea.

Is there any other option for childcare?

Yes this...could the child go to a full day kinder option somewhere else? Or just stay at preschool? Or just skip kinder altogether ?(in my state, school is not mandatory until age 7) I'm not sure what your options are.
I have a dd turning five soon going to school, and she quite a bit bigger than yours (42 lbs) and i can't imagine her riding in a seatbelt. I just can't. But, I have a job where I can take a lunchbreak to run and get her and drop her off.

[britfish]

keep the ideas coming I have lots of things to look in to tomorrow. I think I came up w/ someone who has a child that is going to be in K, I just have to find out if they are am or pm session. How would that work if I find another parent to give her a ride, would I buy a seat for them to keep in their car? As you can tell I've never done carpooling w/ a little one.

[BW1426]

Is this taxi owned by the school or is it a private company? What I'm getting at, is the taxi used for other purposes than just this single run everyday?

[Gypsy]

Yes, you'd buy a seat for the carpooling car.

[britfish]

It is owned by a private company and they use for taxi and shuttle use beyond the K run.
I was just thinking, I wonder if I bought a HBB if they would use that in the taxi since it doesn't have to be installed. They could just leave it at school for me to pick up.
Do you think if they (and the school) would go for this, would you put her in a HBB in the van?

[andre149]

I wouldn't put her in a booster... at her weight it's putting her at a big risk of slipping under the belt if something does happen. I agree with everyone else that best bet would be to find either another parent to drive with a seat in their car or a different childcare program. Something else to consider would be hiring a babysitter that could pick her up at the school and stay with her the rest of that day so she wouldn't need to go to the childcare center those days.

Good luck!

[chickabiddy]

If there were lap/shoulder belts and if you felt confident that they would use the booster properly and she would recognize and speak up if they were not, I would be okay with a good highbacked booster.

[britfish]

I am thinking Plan A: find another parent
Plan B: convince taxi to at minimum use at HBB (then I need to find a good HBB).....

Thank you all for helping me through this, its been really stressful between me and DH. Now at least I have two good plans to work on. Now at least I will be able to sleep tonight.

[bobandjess99]

I am thinking Plan A: find another parent
Plan B: convince taxi to at minimum use at HBB (then I need to find a good HBB).....

Thank you all for helping me through this, its been really stressful between me and DH. Now at least I have two good plans to work on. Now at least I will be able to sleep tonight.

plan B requires there to be lap/shoulder belts. Have you confirmed that there ARE l/s belts? Because there very well may only be lap belts. :(

[tanyaandallie]

I think you plan is a good one. The safest option is to find another parent to transport your child. Buy a carseat with a 5 point harness and leave it installed in their car.

Option number 2 is to talk to the taxi company. If the van has l/s belts get a hbb for your dd to use. While it's not ideal at her weight she is 5 and likely would be ok sitting properly. You would just need to stress to her that she MUST sit in a seating position with a lap/shoulder belt and not in a lap only belt. You will have to but the burden on your dd to make sure the taxi driver puts her in the right place. Teach her how to get the belt guides in the right place and buckle herself in properly. I do think that's possible with a 5 year old. My dd just turned 6 and is pretty self sufficient. I think she could do it all herself if necessary. I just don't think you can count on a random driver to know that she needs to be in a position with a l/s belt.

Unfortunately it's just not a safe option for her to ride in a 15 pass van without a harness or booster. Have you read any of the info on the safety of 15 pass vans? If you go to www.nhtsa.gov you can read some of the info they have on 15 pass vans. They really are not a very safe vehicle to begin with so the last thing you want is your very small 5 year old in one not properly restrained. The do have a pefect record but that does not mean the person running the stop sign or stop light and crashing into them has the same great driving record. You just never know when an accident is going to happen.

[natysr]

This is one of the reasons I really despise states/school systems that only offer 1/2 day kindy.

It is like that here in California.

Sure, if you are a stay at home mom, and don't have issues with the schedule, it is a good transition for kids entering school.

But, for those of us that work out of the home, and our children are already used to being away from us during the day...it makes providing them with a kindy education very difficult.

This was part of the reason we had to choose private school. I was sooo worried that I would not be able to find a school that we could afford, but I kept looking and looking, and did finally find something that fits our needs.

My son is going into Kindergarten this fall, and the school that we found is only $515 per month, and that includes before and after school care.

So, maybe you should look at some private schools in your area. You might be surprised by what you find.

Good luck.

Oh, BTW, my son is only 32 pounds and I would not let him ride without a seat/booster.

[ketchupqueen]

If there was no alternative but a booster for my child, and she was very small, I might make the personal, parental decision to use the new Parkway Slide Guard beneath the recommended weight limit, because one of the biggest risks to kids under 40 lbs. in boosters is submarining, and the PSG's anti-submarine clip would prevent that. It can even be used backless if they won't use a high-backed booster and/or the child has to carry it herself everyday. Backless is not my first, second, or third choice in this situation, but it's better than nothing.

[Unregistered]

Well the taxi is out of the question. They will not use a booster in it and I just can't let her go in it (I wasn't convinced the HBB would be ok). I dug my heels in with DH and he has now agreed to forego the taxi. So now I have 6 weeks to find her a ride. The taxi charges $3 for the 1/2 mile ride, DH says he thinks if we put it out to the girls at preschool/daycare center to do on their lunch break for $5 a day we will get a taker. I hope we can find someone....

thank you for all your support, I guess I needed a reminder to follow my gut, sometimes others opinions make it easier to dig your heels in :)

[tanyaandallie]

Well the taxi is out of the question. They will not use a booster in it and I just can't let her go in it (I wasn't convinced the HBB would be ok). I dug my heels in with DH and he has now agreed to forego the taxi. So now I have 6 weeks to find her a ride. The taxi charges $3 for the 1/2 mile ride, DH says he thinks if we put it out to the girls at preschool/daycare center to do on their lunch break for $5 a day we will get a taker. I hope we can find someone....

thank you for all your support, I guess I needed a reminder to follow my gut, sometimes others opinions make it easier to dig your heels in :)

Is this a private school? If not the whole thing is so weird to me. I would think a public school would be required to provide transportation. Do any of the day cares provide pick up? In our area all the dcp provide buses that pick up from the school. You might explore other after school options and see if there is on the picks up from the school with a bus rather than a taxi.

[skylinphoto]

In most states, wouldnt it have been illegal for her to be in just a seatbelt at only 30 something lbs? What are the laws in your state?
I could be wrong, but that sounds illegal to have a 30ish lb 5 yr old in just a seatbelt.

I hope you find something that works. I understand the difficulty of getting a child to school safely when the parents can't drive them. It's a really really tough thing to figure out. Good luck. :)

[skaterbabscpst]

Legal/illegal. Eh. Depends on if it's actually classified as a taxi. Most states have exemptions for them. Does not make it safe, but it may not be illegal.

[myliljunebugs]

Yeah, I think 15 passenger vans are exempt from the laws. Stupid but you know. :(

[tanyaandallie]

In TX the 15 pass vans really fall under none of the laws so anything goes. I did read that they were trying to change the laws on them, though. I need to go read and see if it passed. However, even under the old law day cares that picked up or dropped off had to use a bus and nota van.

[britfish]

yup, its a public school, just a stinky thing, they don't provide the mid-day bus. I think its crazy they can't provide busses to accomodate they schedule they set.
The van is exempt because its a taxi so no seat belt laws. Our daycare is the only one that offers any type of transportation and thats the taxi.
I am still working on finding a parent to "hire" for this!
This is the first time I am glad to be a parent to an only child, I can't imagine doing this nightmare w/ multiple children! Maybe there is a plus side to failed IVF :)

[SuburbanGrrl]

Good luck in finding someone to drive DD. Hopefully you'll have takers in this economy. Offer to be a reference if they do a good job. Perhaps you could even find a responsible high school graduate or homeschooled 17 year old still living at home that would like to earn a little money and get a reference.