Skip to main content

Getting Around Town


 

You may have noticed that I just can’t seem to let go of certain things. Over the years certain themes resurface with some regularity. 

Here’s one: public transit. Way back in 2013 I had a zany idea for a transit-oriented summer camp option. 

Just had a brilliant, brilliant idea. CA and hocogov need to partner on a camp/recreational course for kids where all activities involve learning how to use Howard County Transit to get to the activity site. You want to change attitudes about public Transit? Kid + fun + knowledgeable, adequate supervision. 

I returned to this concept in a post entitled “The People on the Bus” in June of 2023 when I learned that the RTA was making presentations in HoCo high schools to help students learn how to ride public transit. 

My parents used public transit a lot, I used it some, my children very little, if at all. Yet there are compelling environmental reasons to use public transit instead of individual automobiles. What would we need to do to turn the use of public transit in the other direction?

A recent Facebook post from Glenwood Academy caught my eye.


Image from Glenwood Academy social media 


Practicing a mock "Uber drive" - learning how to access various modes of transportation- our scholars practiced scheduling the ride and meeting the "driver"

Glenwood Academy is a nonpublic special education facility that works with students who have language-based learning differences. (I wrote about them last Spring.) Learning how to independently navigate the multiple steps involved in using a ride-sharing service is a valuable life skill. No, it’s not taking public transit but it is a hands-on educational experience that will give students more autonomy. I like that.

Truth in advertising: Glenwood Academy is no longer in Glenwood. They moved to Eldersburg during the summer of 2024 because they needed a facility with more space. Do students from Howard County still attend Glenwood? Yes, they do. Which means that, as far as I am concerned, Glenwood Academy is still a local story for the purposes of this blog.

I still think that public transit is important and that it’s a good investment to teach kids how to use it. They should feel confident that they can get around town safely and successfully.  It can (and should) become a part of how they experience our community.

It’s also true that ride-sharing services have become an accepted mode of travel and it’s good to know how to use them, too. Embedded in a simulation like the one at Glenwood Academy are numerous skills that these students are working on daily in an “academic” sense. Truthfully, something like this could be equally valuable in a public school setting, if it were possible to dedicate the time to make it happen. 

Autonomy. Independence. Success. Safety. There’s a lot to be gained in learning how to get around.


 


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Getting Fresh

One of my favorite days in the Spring comes when this year’s list of Farmer’s Markets is released. That happened this week. New this year are markets in Old Ellicott City and the “Merriweather Market” which, according to the address, will be located here . I mistakenly thought at first glance that it was in the new-construction part of the Merriweather District. I find the name confusing considering its actual location. I’m going to guess that this market is an initiative of the Howard Hughes Corporation because the name seems chosen more for branding purposes than anything else.  Alas, the market in Maple Lawn is gone. The thread on the markets on the County Executive’s FB page will provide you with quite the education in who actually runs the Farmers Markets vs what people often think is going on. Short answer: they are not  chosen nor run by the county. Each market is an independent entity, sometimes started by community volunteers, other times supported by local businesses...
1 comment
Read more

They Can Wait

This is not a typical Saturday post. That’s because, in my community, it’s not a typical Saturday.  Oakland Mills High School, after years of deferred repair, needs massive renovation. It’s pretty simple: when you don’t fix a problem it gets bigger. The school system itself said the the OMHS school building was  "no longer conducive to learning" back in 2018.  2018 .  But Thursday the Boad of Education voted to push it out of the lineup of important projects which will be given the go-ahead to proceed soonest.  In my opinion it’s a terrible decision and sets a dangerous precedent. To explain, here’s the advocacy letter I sent in support of Oakland Mills High School. I was rather proud of it. I am writing to ask you to proceed with needed renovation at Oakland Mills High School in the most timely and comprehensive manner humanly possible. I have read the letter sent to you by the Oakland Mills Community Association and I am in complete agreement. You are extremel...
1 comment
Read more

What Kids Are Thinking

  It’s a Monday in February, and if you guessed that a lot of Howard County students have the new cell phone policy on their minds, you’d be right. It will mean big changes and it will be stressful, no matter how much good we hope it will do in the long run. But on this particular Monday cell phones might not be top of mind, as amazing as that seems. Some kids will go to school wondering if they or family members will be seized by ICE. Some will fear that their parents’ employment will be purged by the ongoing rampage of Elon Musk and his cronies through Federal Government. Some fear heightened and renewed racism as programs that supprted Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion are vilified and destroyed.  Some worry that it soon won’t be safe for them to use the bathroom in school anymore. It goes without saying that some kids fear going to school every day because of the prevalence of school shootings.  And look! Here’s something new to fear. That old hate group, Libs of TikTo...
1 comment
Read more