Confused about Daylight Saving Time? See how your life could change when it’s forever

17 Mar Confused about Daylight Saving Time? See how your life could change when it’s forever

On Tuesday, the U.S. Senate, unanimously and with nearly zero debate, passed legislation to make daylight saving time (DST) permanent across the country.

The vote took place two days after lawmakers lost an hour of sleep on Sunday when the clocks sprang forward, marking this year’s DST start, and bringing with it one additional hour of sunshine for most Americans.

The bill, dubbed the “Sunshine Protection Act,” and drafted by Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, is now headed to the House of Representatives. The swiftness of its passage has surprised many, as Congress is widely regarded as a (truly) slow-galloping horse. (It did take nine months for it to assemble a second stimulus package during the height of the COVID pandemic in the country.) But the mild inconvenience of remembering to reset the clocks, and the slight frustration of an hour less sleep once a year, seemed to spur action.

While politicians agree the current system doesn’t work, there is less consensus over which of the two schedules we should keep. The bill favors daylight saving; advocates claim the extra daylight late in the day during the winter months cultivates more economic activity, and curbs traffic accidents, even crime, during early-evening hours.

However, sleep experts argue that, from the health perspective, DST should be done away with, and standard time (ST) should be year-round. In a public statement following the bill’s passage, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine claimed ST best aligns with human circadian rhythms. Disrupting that rhythm has been linked to increased risks of obesity, cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome, and mood disorders.

Permanent DST would also mean darker winter mornings for schoolchildren and many shift workers who have an early commute to their respective activities. Also, just how much actual daylight you gain would depend on where you live geographically and within your area’s time zone. (For example, in areas along the western edge of Eastern time, permanent DST would mean sunrises in December wouldn’t occur until 9 a.m.)

If you’re wondering how all this could look for you, well, look no further! This handy interactive map, created by Axis Maps cartographer Andy Woodruff, lets you see how much always using DST, abolishing it, or leaving the biannual time change alone would suck for you (or not!)—based on what you would call a “reasonable” latest sunrise time or earliest sunset time.

Source: Fast Company