It has been years since British Columbians were promised a switch to permanent Daylight Saving Time in BC, one made by previous Premier John Horgan.
So, where are we at with that promise today?
While there have been some developments in the States, it doesn’t sound like the hands on the clock have moved enough for BC to take real action.
We reached out to the office of BC Premier David Eby for the latest.
As we said back in March 2022, BC is still one step back from no longer springing forward.
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Mike Padden is a US senator who recently commented about Daylight Saving. A coalition has been formed by California, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho with hopes of proposing legislation to make Pacific Standard Time permanent.
“If there is one issue most people agree on, it’s the dislike of moving their clocks from standard time to Daylight Saving Time in the spring and then back to standard time in the fall,” Padden said.
“There have been scientific studies connecting several health problems with switching back and forth between standard time and Daylight Saving Time, including greater risks of heart attacks and more frequent workplace injuries. This bill would allow Washington to finally ‘ditch the switch’ by keeping us on standard time permanently.”
It turns out that three of those states are the ones the BC government is waiting on.
Eby’s office says, “People in BC have told us that it’s important for them to maintain alignment with our neighbours in Washington, Oregon, and California.”
“The move to permanent DST is planned to be brought into effect at a time that maintains alignment with our neighbours.”
They added: “We are continuing to monitor how the US proceeds.”
In 2019, 93% of 223,000 BC residents said they wanted to remain on year-round Daylight Saving Time.
“It is as clear a message as we could hope to receive.”
While the message might be clear for the BC government, it sounds like the ball is still in the court of our southern neighbours.
Maybe next year?
For now, prepare to spring forward and lose an hour of sleep on March 10.