Time Zones and Daylight Savings

[SubHuman]

It's not really as complicated as some seem to want to make it.

It's just the pointless twice-a-year clock-changing nuisance that needs to be dropped, and most people would prefer to stay year-round on the time we now already use eight months a year through the summer, and in winter have the sunlight later in the day rather than the morning. If that causes a problem for schools who don't want kids travelling in darkness, it should be up to them to set their hours to avoid it, not make everyone else ridiculously move their clocks back and forth.

The European Union will stop changing their clocks in 2021. North American jurisdictions should get together now and also plan to do it for 2021, which should still give enough warning.

Wouldn't that make two abutting time zones (likely somewhere in the Atlantic) the same time? I guess that doesn't *REALLY* matter, but just a thought.

Saskatchewan is already there. As can be seen in the map in another post above, most of the province lines up geographically with the Mountain Time Zone, but as far as I know no one has ever wanted to call it something like "Permanent Mountain Daylight Saving Time" -- It's just Central Standard Time. I suppose we (in Toronto and presumably most of eastern Canada and U.S.) could be on Atlantic Standard Time, if that's what people want to call it.
The term "Daylight Saving" confuses people as to whether it means the practice of changing our clocks or the time designation used in summer. And it has always sounded silly to me. Daylight can't be 'saved' -- maybe shifted might have been a more appropriate term, or "Summer Time" as in Britain.

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

The issue really isn't whether the time should be EDT or EST - but that the bi-annual change is bad for health and safety, period;

How daylight saving time can affect your health

As clocks tick toward the end of daylight saving time, many sleep scientists and circadian biologists are pushing for a permanent ban because of potential ill effects on human health.

www.ctvnews.ca

It's like going purposefully creating a problem for so little real benefit because of historical inertia.

AoD

 

[W. K. Lis]

On December 21st (Winter Solstice), sunrise is 7:47 AM and sunset is 4:43 PM (from link).

If we were "Daylight" Time all year, on December 21st sunrise would be 8:47 AM and sunset 5:43 PM.

Most schools in the GTA start around 9:00 AM or 8:30 AM. Compare with some school starting times in the States. From link.

Connecticut: 7:46 a.m.​

​

Delaware: 7:42 a.m.​

​

Florida: 8:17 am​

​

Georgia : 8:09 a.m.​

​

Kentucky: 8:03 a.m.​

​

Maine: 7:53 a.m.​

​

Massachusetts: 7:53 a.m.​

​

Michigan: 7:54 a.m.​

​

New Hampshire: 7:46 a.m.​

​

New Jersey: 8:00 a.m.​

​

New York: 7:59 a.m.​

​

North Carolina: 8:03 a.m.​

​

Ohio: 7:52 a.m.​

​

Pennsylvania: 7:48 a.m.​

​

Rhode Island: 7:50 a.m.​

​

South Carolina: 8:03 a.m.​

​

Vermont: 8:05 a.m.​

​

Virginia: 8:04 a.m.​

 

[NotAToy]

Actually Bracebridge - maybe technically a hair south of it. If you have kiddies, Santa's Village Bracebridge is so name because it's half-way to the North Pole - a perfect spot for Santa to have a summer vacation.

Ottawa feels offended.

Jokes aside, DST is really a nuisance for most (much?) of the population that causes headaches. The EU is going in the right direction.

 

[Northern Light]

On December 21st (Winter Solstice), sunrise is 7:47 AM and sunset is 4:43 PM (from link).

If we were "Daylight" Time all year, on December 21st sunrise would be 8:47 AM and sunset 5:43 PM.

Most schools in the GTA start around 9:00 AM or 8:30 AM. Compare with some school starting times in the States. From link.

Connecticut: 7:46 a.m.​

​

Delaware: 7:42 a.m.​

​

Florida: 8:17 am​

​

Georgia : 8:09 a.m.​

​

Kentucky: 8:03 a.m.​

​

Maine: 7:53 a.m.​

​

Massachusetts: 7:53 a.m.​

​

Michigan: 7:54 a.m.​

​

New Hampshire: 7:46 a.m.​

​

New Jersey: 8:00 a.m.​

​

New York: 7:59 a.m.​

​

North Carolina: 8:03 a.m.​

​

Ohio: 7:52 a.m.​

​

Pennsylvania: 7:48 a.m.​

​

Rhode Island: 7:50 a.m.​

​

South Carolina: 8:03 a.m.​

​

Vermont: 8:05 a.m.​

​

Virginia: 8:04 a.m.​

What odd-ball start times! I'm not even talking about their relative position on the clock, but the fact the times aren't set to the hour, 1/2 hour, or quarter hour in most cases.

If those start times are for elementary school, I could understand that as it would position parents to be able to drop kids off on the way to work.

If for High School those times are insane.

Studies already show 9am is too early for maximum performance as teens really do need more sleep and tend to go to bed later.

Ideal start times in HS are btw 9:30-10am. The latter also serves to reduce unsupervised time after school for teenage boys (the group most likely to find trouble when left to their own devices)

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

Ottawa feels offended.

Jokes aside, DST is really a nuisance for most (much?) of the population that causes headaches. The EU is going in the right direction.

If it is only just something as benign as headaches:

Daylight-saving time is literally killing us. It's time to end this switch.

Daylight-saving time may seem like a harmless shift. But doctors say it has deadly consequences, increasing risks of heart attacks, and car accidents.

www.businessinsider.com

AoD

 

[W. K. Lis]

Yukon abandons seasonal time change

From link.

People living in the Yukon will change their clocks for the seasonal time change for the last time this weekend.

The territorial government of Yukon made the announcement Wednesday that Yukon will remain on Pacific Daylight Saving Time after Yukoners adjust the time on Sunday March 8, according to a press release.

“Yukoners clearly want to see an end to seasonal time change and we are listening. The response to this engagement speaks to the importance of this issue for people,” Yukon Premier Sandy Silver said in a press release.

The Yukon government decided to get public opinion on the time adjustment after a motion was proposed by MLA Paolo Gallina in May 2017.

The government put out a seasonal time change survey that over 4,800 responses from people and organizations over a period from Jan. 6 to Feb. 16, 2020.

The survey asked if people would prefer that the Yukon stay on Pacific Daylight Saving Time, Pacific Standard Time, or to keep having seasonal time changes twice a year.

According to the survey results, 93 per cent of respondents said that they wanted seasonal time changes to stop, and 70 per cent said that they prefer remaining on Pacific Daylight Saving Time.

“Thank you to everyone who took the time to voice an opinion. This helped our government make an informed decision for Yukon,” Silver said.

 

[BurlOak]

Yukon abandons seasonal time change

From link.

Yukon will remain on Pacific Daylight Saving Time

Is Yukon not changing to Central time and abandoning Daylight Savings Time.
Is that not more logical than saying they are Staying on Pacific Daylight Savings Time, but cancelling Daylight Savings Time.

 

[lenaitch]

The only problem I have with the seasonal time change, not counting a couple of infuriating digital clocks, is the accompanying seasonal debate.

 

[W. K. Lis]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1313893827653009411

" private members bill has been tabled that would pave the way to end the bi-annual clock changes, moving Ontario permanently to daylight time. I’m told it has government support. Change would not happen until Quebec and New York State past similar legislation."

 

[Towered]

So have either Quebec or New York been considering this change?

 

[Riseth]

For the love of god, I hope they consider and this bill passes.

I DESPISE Standard Time and would be over the moon to keep Daylight Saving Time year round. No more horrific 4:30pm sunsets and we keep our 9pm summer sunsets

 

[W. K. Lis]

The negative would be that 12:00 clock-face noon would not be solar noon. Solar noon would be at 13:00.

 

[SubHuman]

So have either Quebec or New York been considering this change?

I think the subject has arisen in most jurisdictions in recent years, but it hasn't been a high priority.

Sen. Skoufis wants New York to keep Daylight Saving Time all year

'Fall back' and 'spring forward' could fade away if New York decides to ditch time changes. Other states have considered it, but only 2 have done it.

www.lohud.com

The PQ wants Quebec to stop changing its clocks

Could Quebec do away with changing the clocks twice a year? That's the question the Parti Quebecois putting forth with a motion at the National Assembly on Tuesday.

www.iheartradio.ca

.
The European Union voted some time back to cease moving their clocks in 2021, so that may be pushing North America to do the same.
I think I recall reading that the situation may be somewhat more complicated in the U.S., as there may be some kind of federal regulation stipulating time zones that may also have to be changed, since this move would in effect have jurisdictions changing their time zone.

The negative would be that 12:00 clock-face noon would not be solar noon. Solar noon would be at 13:00.

But that situation already exists now for 8 months a year. Why would "solar noon" matter to someone living in the 21st century? Is anyone checking the sundial waiting for their showdown at high noon?

More specifically, the negative would be dark mornings in December and January, with sunrise not happening until as late as 8:51 a.m. in Toronto. But presumably schools or anything else could easily shift their operating hours (as opposed to ridiculously requiring everyone else to move our clocks) to avoid any problems well ahead of time since they will have months of warning. Maybe have schools start at 9:30 a.m. instead of 9 beginning in Sept. 2021, to avoid having kids travelling to school in the dark.
As mentioned in the Ontario news story, it could also cause problems with being out of sync with Quebec and New York state if they still kept moving their clocks when Ontario didn't, so that's why it probably won't happen until most other provinces and states also address the issue.

 

[W. K. Lis]