Jackie Altvater sells day-care-on-wheels for busy suburban parents and their just as busy children.
Her company's three vans have replaced family station wagons for a growing number of parents in Baltimore and Howard counties too busy working to chauffeur their offspring to and from school, day care and endless after-school activities.
These parents say it's the perfect solution for two-income families or single parents unable to take a turn in neighborhood car pools.
In the past two years, at least six such companies have sprung up in the metropolitan area. Most already have plans to buy more vehicles to accommodate working parents willing to pay as much as $60 to $70 per week for daily door-to-door transportation for their children.
"The baby boomers have more money to let their children do extra things like swimming practice or tennis lessons, but no one's home anymore to drive them," said Ms. Altvater, who began Reisterstown-based Karry-All-Kids five months ago.
Nationally, more than 200 companies have entered this fast-growing field since 1991, estimated Rob Hainsworth, executive director of the National Child Transportation Association, based in Naples, Fla.
With 75 percent of all couples nationally having both partners working -- and with their combined work and commuting hours growing ever longer -- the demand for the service was inevitable, said Robin Hardman of the New York-based Families and Work Institute. That's without considering the needs of the growing number of single-parent families.
"Very few workplaces have the flexibility for parents to pick up their children and drive them around, and parents are becoming more concerned with being sure their children are somewhere safe after school," she said. "It makes a lot of sense for them to turn to these services."
The services of area companies -- based in Baltimore, Anne Arundel and Howard counties -- aren't cheap. They typically charge $7 to $8 each way for trips under five miles. A week's worth of rides to and from school or day care easily can exceed $50 per child.
"It's not easy to pay for it, but it's worth it to not have to beg relatives and friends for rides for the kids. I got really tired of doing that, and I'm sure they got tired of me, too," said Kathy Miller of Pikesville, a day-care worker whose two sons travel to private school via Kid Ride three days a week.
The bottom line, parents say, is that when school hours clash with the workday, few other options exist for transportation.
"There was no way I was going to put my four children in a taxi to take them from their school to day care, and I can't take time off work every day to drive them there," said Katie OBrien of Catonsville, who works at the University of Maryland at Baltimore County. "Karry-All-Kids was the best way for them to go. My children are very comfortable with the driver and have a great time."
Making the trips as fun as possible is a top priority for owners of all the area child transportation companies. Birthdays are recognized with little parties on the vans. Drivers often engage the youngsters in sing-alongs during rides.
John Matthews, who drives an afternoon route for Karry-All-Kids, said he spends time at night thinking up tongue twisters and jokes to entertain the next day's passengers.
"In my first couple of days, I ran through my whole repertoire. The kids kept asking for more, so I have been trying to think of more and more things to do with them on the ride," Mr. Matthews said.
Said Ms. Miller's 8-year-old, Eli, who rides with Kid Ride owner Pat Bloom: "It's really fun. After she helps us open up the doors and buckle in, we have a fun ride everyday."
Even more important than fun, both parents and owners say, is safety.
The new child-transportation companies all are licensed by the state Public Service Commission, which also regularly inspects their vans. Most advertise such precautions as driver background, fingerprint and drug checks.
The companies also register each child using their services even once and take snapshots of them for files in both their vans and main offices. Some require parents to use code words or numbers when making changes in scheduled rides.
"It all goes to the peace of mind of parents," said Matthew Kalb, president of Elkridge-based Kangaroo Coach. "Parents are really concerned about putting their child in someone else's vehicle, and rightly so. We want to do everything we can to guarantee safety."
The need for liability insurance plays a big role in keeping their prices high. Mr. Hainsworth, the head of the national child transportation group, said he hopes insurance rates will decrease over time as the fledgling industry demonstrates that its safety record is better than school buses and taxis.
Although the industry is in its infancy, local companies already have begun to develop their own niches.
Kangaroo Coach, for example, focuses on transporting large groups. "I'll drive any day of the week when parents call, whether it's a regularly scheduled route or an emergency," said Sharon Winegard Folts, owner of Children's Chariots of Severna Park.
"One very enterprising mother even keeps my number handy because her boys tend to miss the school bus," she said.
"When they missed the bus one day, she called me and had me pick them up. They were quite surprised. They thought they had gotten away with something, and there I was to take them to school."