The shortcut a child walks becomes a different distance in a parent’s imagination.

The walk a child finds ordinary is, to a parent, a corridor of possible harms. Both perceptions are real, and the parent’s version tends to win, which is part of why children now travel far less independently than their parents did at the same age.

If you are the worried one, it is worth separating the risks that are actually likely from the ones that are vivid. Walk the route with them a few times, then let them do it. The independence is not a small thing to hand over, and it is difficult to give back later.