Dakota Beacon

            We survived the November 3 end of Daylight Savings Time (DST) with no ill effects -- except those with bruised egos who forgot to turn their clocks back one hour.

            Looking at history, DST is a hodgepodge at best. In the US it currently begins the second Sunday in March and reverts to Standard Time the first Sunday in November. Exceptions: Hawaii and Arizona do not observe DST -- but the Navajo Nation in Arizona does. Confusing?

            Our neighbors in Canada experience a mishmash of DST arrangements. British Columbia observes DST except for a small area in the Mountain Time Zone which does not abide. Ontario observes DST, but areas in the northwest do not. Most areas of Saskatchewan do not observe DST. Quebec does observe DST except in the Atlantic Time Zone. Newfoundland and Labrador, since 1988, observe Double DST (DDST) advancing the clock two hours in the spring.

            Mexico first observed DST in 1996. The start date is the first Sunday in April and ends the last Sunday in October except for the state of Sonora which does not observe DST.

            If anyone should be held accountable for DST, Ben Franklin must accept the lion‘s share of responsibility. Yes, this is the same Ben Franklin of kites-and-lightning fame.

            Mr. Franklin conceived the idea while in Paris. One morning, he was rudely awakened by a noise at 6:00 a.m. and was amazed to find his room filled with light. Even more amazing was the amount of daylight lost to those traditionally arising around noon. An idea struck him like a bolt of lightning, so to speak. Whimsically he wrote of his idea in “Journal de Paris” going so far as to calculate potential monetary savings if people arose earlier and capitalized on existing daylight.

            Before the mid-eighteen hundreds most nations reconciled their position about DST. A nation based its measurement of time on a north-south prime meridian that ran through its capitol city. Britain’s prime meridian ran through London, France’s ran through Paris, Russia’s through St. Petersburg and the United States’ through Washington, DC. As long as travel and communications remained at a slow pace and clocks were notoriously inaccurate, relaxed time measurement between countries was not an issue.

            Following the mid-eighteen hundreds steam power and other technologies advanced rapidly. Expanding railroad systems generated the greatest havoc. Trains traveling east and west caused confusion for both train personnel and travelers alike.

            Of necessity, railroads implemented Standard Time in 1883. Previously, most U.S. cities determined their own time as a local matter. Local clocks were set by “sun time” and communities were slow to adopt Standard Time.

            A gentleman named Stanford Fleming instigated the initial effort creating time meridians in both the U.S. and Canada. Railroads, of course, championed the practice in order to standardize their schedules. Congress, with railroad support, codified Fleming’s ideas in the Standard Time Act of 1918 imposing time zones. The Interstate Commerce Commission, the only contemporary federal agency involved with transportation, assumed responsibility for enforcement.

            DST always had its supporters and detractors. Opponents have their reasons.

--Sleep Disturbances. People claimed it was difficult to adjust to altered sleep schedules. Protests range from mundane gripes to legitimate complaints from those with existing sleep disorders.

--Severity of Auto Accidents. Some evidence suggests that, during the adjustment to DST, auto accidents tend to increase. The reason is not entirely clear.

--Pedestrian Fatalities. What is clear are the incidents of pedestrian-auto accidents around 6:00 p.m. after clocks are set back in the autumn as confirmed by researchers at Carnegie Mellon University.

            Reasons favoring DST have obviously won the day.

--Voter Turnout. Increased voter turnout was touted as a benefit. It sounded good, but to date, this is mostly wishful thinking. So far, the data doesn’t support the claim.

--Fewer Violent Crimes. If data did not support voter turnout, it certainly does support the claim that DST helps curtail violent crime. The U.S. Law Enforcement Assistance Administration found that crime was consistently down during DST.

--Fewer Traffic Accidents. Auto accidents tend to decrease slightly during DST although pedestrian accidents, as noted above, definitely increase.

--Energy Conservation. Energy conservation shows mixed results. The Department of Transportation and the Bureau of Standards produced conflicting results. Also, morning and evening usage during Standard Time and DST tend to cancel out each other. As one would expect, energy consumption varies during summer and winter and the imposition of DST impacts usage only slightly.

--Economic Benefit. There is some benefit realized during DST when consumers are afforded the opportunity to shop late during hours of daylight. Measurable economic growth is obtained.

--Popular Support. Most important of all, time and available daylight for evening activities wins the hearts of most urbanites. They enjoy the long summer evenings.

            Bank on it. Daylight Savings Time is here to stay.

Dennis M. Patrick can be contacted at (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).