Repeal daylight savings time. Such a repeal will prevent the drop in productivity and the negative health effects experienced by people as they yearly adjust their sleep schedules to changed time. In a modern society, our agricultural sector can adjust to fewer hours of daylight by setting alarms for themselves and adjusting employees’ hours, without the disruption caused for their fellow Americans. It would lessen confusion for international and national common carriers. It would receive broad, bipartisan support.
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It wouldn’t receive my support, I like DST
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The Case Against Daylight Saving Time: An Analysis of Traffic Safety and Economic Impact
Daylight Saving Time (DST), a practice initially instituted to conserve energy by extending daylight into the evening hours, has become a contentious tradition in modern society. While it was once believed to benefit the economy through energy savings and increased consumer activity, emerging evidence and contemporary analyses suggest that the costs, particularly in terms of traffic safety and economic disruption, might outweigh these benefits.
Traffic Safety Concerns
One of the most compelling arguments against DST involves its impact on traffic accidents. Studies and discussions on platforms like X have highlighted a noticeable spike in traffic incidents following the spring transition into DST. This phenomenon can be attributed to several factors:
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Disrupted Sleep Patterns: The shift disrupts the human circadian rhythm, leading to sleep deprivation. This alteration in sleep patterns results in reduced alertness, slower reaction times, and impaired cognitive functions, all of which contribute to increased road accidents. A post on X noted an increase in road fatalities, suggesting that even a single hour’s change could have immediate and deadly consequences.
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Adjustment Period: The human body takes time to adjust to new wake-up times, which means for days or even weeks after the time change, drivers are inherently more at risk of accidents due to drowsiness. Research has quantified this risk, showing a significant percentage increase in fatal traffic accidents during the week following the spring shift.
Economic Impact
The economic argument for DST was historically centered around energy conservation. However, modern analysis question this benefit:
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Productivity Loss: The transition to and from DST causes what some describe as a form of jet lag, leading to a temporary but significant dip in productivity. Employees are less efficient, which, when aggregated across the workforce, results in a considerable economic loss. Some experts have highlighted the billions lost in productivity, suggesting that the economic cost might be higher than any residual energy savings.
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Health Costs: Increased health issues linked to DST transitions, such as higher incidences of heart attacks and strokes, as noted in various studies, lead to higher healthcare costs and productivity loss due to sick leaves. These health-related economic impacts are often overlooked when considering the viability of DST.
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Inconclusive Energy Savings: While initial motivations for DST included energy conservation, contemporary studies suggest the energy savings are minimal or even negligible with today’s changed patterns of energy use, where heating, cooling, and lighting needs are less tied to the time of day due to advancements in technology.
Broader Societal Impact
Beyond traffic and economy, DST affects daily life in ways that ripple through society:
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Agricultural Disruption: the change in time can disrupt the natural schedule of livestock, which doesn’t adhere to human-made clocks, leading to confusion and potential economic loss in farming communities.
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Mental Health: The abrupt change in daily rhythm can also affect mental health, potentially leading to increased stress or seasonal affective disorder, which indirectly impacts economic productivity through wellness and healthcare costs.
Conclusion
The tradition of Daylight Saving Time, once heralded for its economic benefits through energy conservation, now faces scrutiny for its unintended consequences on traffic safety and economic health. While some still argue for the lifestyle benefits of extended evening daylight, the evidence from traffic accident statistics, economic analyses, and health studies suggests that the costs of changing our clocks twice a year might outweigh any perceived benefits. Given this, a reevaluation of DST’s role in modern society seems not just reasonable but necessary. The movement towards permanent standard time, as favored by health experts and evidenced by discussions on platforms like X, could mitigate these negative impacts, promoting safety, economic stability, and overall well-being.
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Yes please. I cannot believe we still do this
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I’d like to mention that the schedule that the Senate and Congress keep was created back when people had to travel by horse, and had crops they had to sew and harvest. I think we are beyond that now with our current technology. They should work as we do. Five days a week with two weeks vacation. Or something close to that.
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Why would anyone want it to get dark sooner in the evening? Also everything would adapt if we would stay on one program.
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DST was pushed through by the recreation / leisure industry to give workers post WWII some time after work to golf, etc. The Legislature of the State of FLorida voted to make DST permanent, but our legislators can’t get it through Congress. (What the heck happened to the 10th Amendment?)
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Pretty sure like several ten thousand people or so die because of the circadian shift of DST, which results in illnesses and accidents
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I am for this, but I think you have to be very careful how this is worded. Saying end daylight savings time means we stay on winter time and don’t leap forward in the spring. Rather, we should have PERMANENT daylight savings time. Meaning longer evening daylight throughout the year.
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Maybe congress doesnt know this, but we have a new gadget called “light bulbs”. Its the craziest thing! They turn dark…into Light! This is the epitome of dysfunction that DST hasnt been repealed nationwide.
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I agree with this. STANDARD TIME ONLY. ALL YEAR ROUND.
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Every day there are surely many thousands of misunderstandings related to time zones. Just go to UTC everywhere. People who live in a certain area will get used to taking lunch whenever they take it… doesn’t have to say 12:00 on the clocks IMO.
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As long as we use the “spring forward” time.
Fall back makes days extremely short.
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The alternative of permanent DST would make it dark past 8:45am in most states.
Scientific studies and real-world history show we do not adapt to permanent DST, we instead sleep less.
Permanent Standard Time preserves morning light and benefits sleep health.
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The Florida State Legislature voted. The people of Florida did not.
And the FL St Lege voted for permanent DST, which is federally prohibited, and has historically cost lives and money.
Any state legislature can instead vote for permanent Standard Time, the natural clock set to the sun, which is federally pre-approved.
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No, permanent DST would be worse than the status quo. It has cost lives and money when attempted. It would put sunrise in most states past 8:45am, and past 8am for 3+ months.
Permanent Standard Time instead is best for human circadian rhythms. It is the natural clock, aligned to the sun. It is the honest way to tell time.
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Seems like most people don’t care about the sleep or health, they want longer days. I don’t want it dark at 6:30 pm in the summer.
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Ditch Daylight Saving Time (fast time) and restore permanent Standard Time (natural time), for the health, mood, safety, education, and economy of schoolchildren, commuters, farmers, construction workers, and more.
Permanent Standard Time alone can end clock change quickly, safely, and fairly, as most people wish. It can do so without delaying sunrise, for well-being and prosperity. Permanent Standard Time has been observed for decades in Arizona, Hawaii, all five US territories, and most nations. Most of Mexico restored permanent Standard Time in late 2022, and more American states now have permanent Standard Time bills than ever before. Permanent Standard Time would protect start times for schoolchildren and essential workers (farmers, police, firefighters, commercial drivers, transit operators, healthcare personnel, teachers, and more) by letting most sleep naturally past sunrise most days. Its benefits to circadian health would improve immunity, longevity, mood, alertness, and performance in school, sports, and work. It can prevent traffic deaths, lower crime, and reduce chronic illnesses. Standard Time is the honest and natural clock, set to the sun (also known for this reason as God’s time), which balances morning and evening light fairly.
Some might consider permanent DST, but history and science show this is worse than biannual clock change. Permanent DST would delay sunrise past 8am (when most school/work begins) more than three months in most states, and later even than 8:45am for a week in most states. It increased deaths and injuries when last attempted in the US. It would force constituents to wake an hour early relative to solar time every weekday all winter. Americans rejected permanent DST in 1974, and it failed in several other years and places. It would deprive morning light needed by farmers and construction workers. It would revert benefits of starting school later. It would delay radio broadcasts of morning news until most people have begun work. It would increase need for morning heat and evening air conditioning in homes. It would disrupt worship for those who pray at sunrise. Moving clocks to DST acutely deprives sleep; leaving clocks on DST chronically deprives sleep. DST’s delayed sunrise significantly increases accidents, disease, and healthcare costs. It significantly decreases learning, productivity, and earnings. Let those who prefer DST wake themselves early.
Scores of organizations and hundreds of researchers, physicians, teachers, parents, religious leaders, and journalists on the right and left oppose DST and endorse permanent Standard Time. Among these are the Society for Research on Biological Rhythms, Sleep Research Society, National Sleep Foundation, American Academy of Sleep Medicine, American Academy of Neurology, American College of Chest Physicians, National Safety Council, National PTA, editorial boards of Bloomberg, Star Tribune, Oregonian, Sun Sentinel, writers from Cato, Daily Wire, Breaking Points, and many others.
Please hear the nonpartisan consensus of history, science, and common sense. Save time, money, and lives. Make clocks honest again! Let’s ditch DST and restore permanent Standard Time.
Illustration of the difference between Standard Time and Daylight Saving Time:
Map of sunrise times for permanent Standard Time versus permanent Daylight Saving Time:
Comparison photos of winter mornings with Daylight Saving Time versus Standard Time:
Historical news clippings from the last time the United States tried permanent Daylight Saving Time:
Quotations in support of permanent Standard Time:
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Seems like most people don’t care about the sleep or health, they want longer days. I don’t want it dark at 6:30 pm in the summer.
Our rallying cry is “Make America Healthy Again”, and permanent Standard Time does so naturally.
Nowhere in the contiguous US is summer sunset as early as 6:30pm Standard Time.
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Quite possibly the most important issue of our time…
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