Here in America, I had a coworker a few years ago who literally would not let his double-digit-aged children cross the street to school by themselves.
It's a weird fuckin' place.
- walk and bike around the block by myself when I was 7
- walk to the stores 1.5 miles away when I was 9, sometimes with my 3 yr older brother
- explore the irrigation ditches behind my house when I was 10
- skate down to the mall when I was 13
My parents warned me that the guy across the street with a VW van was 'weird' and might molest me, but didn't try to restrict me much.
I also played my share of Sega games and learned to program on an Amiga and C64, so I was even a bit of a homebody compared to many kids. I can only imagine how dull my childhood would have been if I was barely allowed to leave the house. It amazes me how little people trust their children and society these days.
Not knowing how to get to school? Fair enough, maybe it really is implausible for him to get to school on his own - I don't know your local geography. My wife grew up in Plano, TX; there was a big highway between her and her high school, which was also miles away. At the time, Plano didn't really have a public bus system to speak of, and she didn't have a bike - walking five miles isn't a very good option. She would know how to get there, but there was no reason to do it aside from school bus or her parents driving.
The 80's happened which brought a few highly publicized child abductions/murders. Notably the Walsh child. His father scared every parent into becoming a helicopter parent. (Not judging, just saying).
People really haven't loosened up much since. Every stranger is dangerous.
Of course it was fiction, but still.
[0] Except the alien thing.
If I let my elementary age children do that today the police would be called. My sister has had neighbors call because her kids were playing in their front yard.
It's a 100% sad and ridiculous situation. We're raising an imprisoned generation who can't handle anything. How is staring at a glowing screen all day a childhood?
EDIT: I suppose I should tone down my rhetoric but this really worries me.
My understanding of Russia is that serial murderers Did Not Exist by decree; certainly not serial child murderers like Andrei Chikatilo. The city never felt unsafe to me; I think I really felt that ethos of "we're all in this together", especially based on a childhood incident where I got lost at a public event, and a stranger brought me home. (Of course I knew where I lived; I was a child, not an idiot.)
[1] https://goo.gl/maps/jx3Y76UuXN62 - moderately rural most of the way.
Adults are part to blame as socially, parents are frowned upon for even letting their kid take the bus instead of being their private chauffeur. (Granted I live in an area where private schools are more popular than public. But I've seen this same thing play out in the exurbs with mostly public schools.)
I live in USA, and my child started walking to the school bus stop alone at age 7. There's value-add in giving kids more freedom and responsibility. I see it every day that my child treats her freedom as a privilege, and gains more self confidence.
I hope this helicopter/snow plow parenting trend begins to fade in America.
And I walked to and from school in the village (in the 60s) from age 5