My partner lived right in downtown Toronto,while his ex lived ..mid-town only 7 km. away. During shared child custody arrangements for several years, his children came over to his place separately from school starting when they were 13 and 11. They took the subway and streetcar themselves.

My partner gave up having a car after the divorce. The children could not be schlepped around by him. He would accompany them on local transit when it was needed.

I was living in my own home out in the suburbs...

The children are now 34 and 36. One did her MA in English Lit. and now teaches foreign students, TOEL and other...is married with 3 boys. He runs his own butcher and sandwich shop. Of course, he seeks accounting and business advice from dearie.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
In hindsight for myself, when I was a child I didn't want to run away from home, even though I found the strictness annoying and at times, stultifying: I knew if I ran away even back then in my head, I knew I would have to find food and place to live. Being poor can make a child desperate to run away OR child appreciates very quickly what it means to have food on the table daily, to be in a warm house and protected by parents (if the parent is not abusive).

I only wanted to leave when I was bound for university.