Different cultures I guess. I definitely would not have done that as a kid, my parents wouldn't have allowed me to, and someone would have called the police if they saw a 10y/o walking along these roads
Today, same school, same neighborhood, is a traffic jam every morning, as the kids are all driven to school. I could very well imagine parents saying that it's no longer safe to walk, due to the traffic. :-(
It was literally impossible to drive on the road for cars during the half hour each morning and afternoon where we kids were there.
Similar to Amsterdam or København