It appears you live in the UK, where a majority of people live in cities and towns where public transportation is a viable way for most people to travel most places in their local area.

This is not the case in most of the US. In some places it's because public transportation is not prioritized for funding, but in many it's a matter of low population density making it less practical.

Not everyone lives in cities, or in cities where it's safe for (all) 13-year-olds to ride a public bus in the dark, much less bike.

Are public busses haunted or something? Why are they unsafe when it’s dark? How do you think other countries get children to school? They walk, take a normal bus, ride a bike. They manage a-ok.