Why do we 'fall back?': The story of daylight time
Millions of Canadians change the clocks forward on the second Sunday of March, when daylight time starts, and back on the first Sunday in November, when it ends at 2 a.m.
Daylight time is a practice that involves changing the clocks to maximize the use of light available during the summer so that darkness falls at a later time of the clock.
The switch is often associated with farmers wanting more light for harvesting, but it was first introduced to save energy during the First World War.
Now, as of 1987, daylight time isn’t federally mandated; that’s why not everyone in Canada will be changing the clocks.
Areas highlighted in red represent parts of Canada that do not observe DST. (April Walker/The Weather Network/Canva)
Famously, Saskatchewan does not observe, meaning it has the same time as Calgary in the winter but Winnipeg in the summer.
The one exception is the Lloydminster area, which joins in on the time change.
The Yukon, parts of Northern B.C., eastern Quebec, some regions in Ontario, and most of Nunavut, also do not adjust the clocks twice a year.
Quick facts
The time change can change the birth order of twins, on paper at least. It happened in 2016, when Emily and Seth Peterson of West Barnstable welcomed their sons Samuel and Ronan on Nov. 6 in Cape Cod.
Samuel was born just before the 2 a.m. time change. Ronan arrived 31 minutes later, but because the clocks had already fallen back one hour, his official birth time was recorded as 1:10 a.m. instead of 2:10 a.m.
Violent crime in the US goes down 10-13 per cent during daylight time, according to a 2015 study.
Candy manufacturers lobbied for DST to be extended to Halloween so young trick-or-treaters could stay out later.
Port Arthur, Ontario (now part of Thunder Bay) was the first municipality in the world to establish DST on July 1, 1908.
It’s daylight time
Will daylight time ever end?
Love it or hate it, the biannual change doesn’t seem to be going anywhere quickly. Both Ontario and B.C. have passed bills to throw out the time change, but they won't go through with it unless neighbouring states and provinces to make the change as well.
B.C. has pledged to end daylight time if Washington, Oregon, and California follow suit. Ontario says it will end DST if Quebec and New York promise to do the same. (April Walker/The Weather Network/Canva)
So, let your phone make the time change for you and enjoy that extra hour of sleep. Or just go about your night as normal if DST is a thing of the past where you live.
