Spring forward and Fall back

October 22nd, 2008

Don’t forget to put your clocks back this Saturday 26th October for an extra hour in bed, if you’re lucky. The annual ritual of putting the clocks back has raised the question again as to exactly why we do this.

In Spring we put the clocks forward an hour in order to make better use of the daylight. It makes the mornings slightly darker but gives us more light at the end of the day which means that we can do more in the evenings. In the winter we change the clocks back again so that mornings get lighter earlier but the evenings get darker earlier.

Every year there is an appeal to not put the clocks back. One article I found on The BBC website goes back to 2003 where safety campaigners were requesting that the British Summertime is not changed. They believed that 450 deaths and serious injuries happen every year due to the clocks going back. This was put to the test between 1968 and 1971 with results suggesting that 2,500 deaths and serious injuries cound be reduced.

A study by University of Cambridge’s Centre of Technology Management considered the costs of Britain joining Central European Time (CET). According to The Times article this would mean that during the height of the summer it would remain light until 11pm and not get darker until 5pm even during midwinter.

The study suggests that changing to CET would reduce road accidents as there would be more daylight in the evening during rush hour and it would also reduce accidents involving children. Children spend longer on the roads after school and so the risk of them getting hurt is higher, more so if it is darker. It would also reduce electricity consumption due to people spending more of their waking hours in the daylight.

So there appears to be many reasons to keep our clocks at British Summertime. According to a poll for the Mayor of London, 60% of Londoners would prefer the clocks not to be put back in the winter. Especially during the current credit crunch people will find their household electricity bills increasing due to more lighting being required in the mornings.

I personally would prefer not to put the clocks back. It may mean that mornings are slightly darker but it gives us more daylight hours during the day, which means that we are able to do more.

What do you think?

Entry Filed under: Winter