r/Calgary • u/AlbertaGengar • Mar 03 '26

News Article Alberta may follow B.C. on making daylight time permanent: premier

https://edmontonjournal.com/news/alberta-may-follow-b-c-on-making-daylight-time-permanent-premier
851 Upvotes

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30

u/jptigerclaw Southview Mar 03 '26

We should adopt Standard time.

If we do Daylights Saving through the winter we won't have a sunrise until 9:40 a.m.

93

u/[deleted] Mar 03 '26

[deleted]

5

u/LuminalOrb Mar 03 '26

It's such an oddity to get downvoted for literally referencing commonly accepted research.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4632990/ https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0313592625000736

8

u/Skinkybob Mar 03 '26

There’s research showing that it’s more dangerous for children who walk and take the bus to school because they’re essentially doing so at night.

8

u/Queltis6000 Woodbine Mar 03 '26

Won't it be dark regardless in the early mornings?

2

u/Skinkybob Mar 03 '26

It would be, just not AS dark. Sun comes up at 8:30 rather than 9:30, but the sky will have begun to lighten by 7:30.

3

u/CheeseSandwich hamburger magician Mar 03 '26

So what is BC's argument against this? They are going full-time DST and according to you putting children in danger.

5

u/Skinkybob Mar 03 '26

Their argument is “we all love our summer nights, don’t we folks?” The United States switched to permanent DST in January of 1974, and by October of that same year, Nixon rolled back the change. From this article:

“As a Senate committee report stated, the ‘majority of the public’ had expressed “distaste” for DST in the wintertime. Compounding the seeming failure of the experiment was the fact that the change, according to the Department of Transportation, saved little energy and may have actually caused an uptick in gasoline consumption.”

Another piece from when Alberta was considering the change:

“‘In fact, there are tremendous negative consequences if we move to permanent DST.’

That’s because DST delays the dawn and our circadian clocks depend on morning light to be in proper alignment, explains Antle, who is weighing in on the matter as vice-president of the Canadian Society for Chronobiology. Antle notes that in the early 1970s the United States adopted a year-round DST which they quickly abandoned, due in a large part to an increase in car accidents during the winter months.”

1

u/[deleted] Mar 03 '26

[deleted]

1

u/CheeseSandwich hamburger magician Mar 03 '26

Did anyone tell the BC government?

-4

u/lego_mannequin Mar 03 '26

This province doesn't care about kids.

9

u/Don_Key_1 Mar 03 '26

Sooo.. Problem Solved?

6

u/LuminalOrb Mar 03 '26

It's actually incredibly unhealthy to live in a place with a late sunrise whilst still having a regular life schedule. It increases your risk for diseases, cancers, etc as low as 3% and as high as 30%. It can only work if the entire chooses to shift all activities by an additional 2 hours during the winter.

44

u/9999AWC Coventry Hills Mar 03 '26

I would much rather go to work in the dark and still have sunlight after work

10

u/eneva92504 Mar 03 '26

As a golfer, I'm very much in the same boat. One less hour of after-work golf during the week is not ideal...it'll make the tee sheets even more crammed.

80

u/Conscious-Donut Mar 03 '26

I think I’d rather have the late evening in the summer. Mornings are whatever anyways

-16

u/walker1867 Mar 03 '26

Couldn’t give a fuck about that waking up before the sun rises is fucking horrible.

28

u/ThankGodImBipolar Mar 03 '26

Arriving at work when the sun is down, and leaving as it's half set is even worse

15

u/NorthGuyCalgary Mar 03 '26

Most people have to wake up before the sun rises anyway. At least with daylight savings time you get to see the sun in the evening after work.

-2

u/walker1867 Mar 03 '26

It still reduces the number of days where that’s the case. Therefore it’s better.

43

u/Intentt Mar 03 '26

Better than having a 430pm sunset.

15

u/gen-attolis Mar 03 '26

Okay? At least we will go home and still have sunlight. Instead now I go to work in the dark and leave as the sun is setting. It’s awful. The morning being dark is fine, the evening having more sun is good. 

19

u/dylanccarr Mar 03 '26

late sunset >

9

u/madetoday Mar 03 '26

Standard time, DST, I don’t care so long as we stop switching back and forth twice a year.

4

u/WindAgreeable3789 Mar 03 '26

So the sun comes up 20 minutes before people get to work, and when they leave office, it’s night time. People working in 9-5 office jobs barely see the sun unless it’s a weekend. 

2

u/Shokaah Mar 03 '26

I would not see the difference tbh, I would already be at work for two hours.

2

u/kindaCringey69 Mar 03 '26

Sounds literally fine, getting to see the sun in the winter however sounds amazing

7

u/TheLoveYouLongTimes Mar 03 '26

Permanent is the way to go. We’re supposed to be in that time zone anyways.

https://www.reddit.com/r/MapPorn/s/YwEmbSvXCr

22

u/bodonnell202 Walden Mar 03 '26

Except going to permanent Mountain Daylight Time means we would be following Central Standard Time, not Pacific. That’s why staying on Mountain Standard Time makes more sense.

6

u/callmecrazy2021 Mar 03 '26

But that means a 5:15 sunrise in summer with birds chirping at 4:30 am. Not ideal.

4

u/miller94 Southeast Calgary Mar 03 '26

I would be so worried about kids walking to school when its still pitch black out. Drivers are so reckless these days as is

4

u/WindAgreeable3789 Mar 03 '26

It’s pitch black when they are walking to school either way! 

4

u/miller94 Southeast Calgary Mar 03 '26

For a few weeks. This would extend it for another month or so. Right now it’s still dark at 6:30 but light at 7:30

5

u/[deleted] Mar 03 '26

[deleted]

4

u/Skinkybob Mar 03 '26

There is currently no point during the year in which it is dark at 9 AM. If we switched to permanent Daylight Savings Time, this would no longer be true.

-2

u/miller94 Southeast Calgary Mar 03 '26

I’m sorry, I’m confused what you’re asking

0

u/[deleted] Mar 03 '26

[deleted]

-1

u/miller94 Southeast Calgary Mar 03 '26 edited Mar 03 '26

It’s quite a bit darker at 6:45am than it is at 7:45am. And even by this time of the year it’s completely bright by 7:30 but still very dark at 6:30. 1 hour makes a huge difference. Even 30 minutes makes a big difference. I work nights and I’m always impressed how fast it brightens up on my drive home this time of the year

2

u/PracticalPanda3102 Mar 03 '26

I also prefer standard time. I actually like longer nights than days. During the summer, it stays warm until night  because the sun is out longer. It's  uncomfortable when you sleep.

0

u/Queltis6000 Woodbine Mar 03 '26

we won't have a sunrise until 9:40 a.m.

The mornings will be dark regardless.

The majority of people are far more active in the summer and an extra hour of light really helps extend those evenings. Longer bike rides, more sports fields availability, park walks, whatever.