Another Lost Hour of Sleep: Daylight-Saving Time Begins Even Earlier

'Springing Forward' Sooner

As part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 that President George W. Bush signed in August 2005, daylight-saving time (DST) begins on the second Sunday of March in 2007 instead of in April. You should set your clock forward one hour March 11 at 2AM. Daylight-saving time ends on the first Sunday of November. It is believed this change will help save precious energy. (Try a daylight-saving time quiz.)

Why Did We Wait?

If this DST strategy is such a winning energy saver, why did we wait two years to implement it? For one thing, DST takes its toll on the transportation and telecommunications industries when schedules have to be shifted. The airline industry, alone, claimed that it will cost millions of dollars to change schedules. Schools had concerns about children's safety while waiting for buses in the dark. Gadgets and computers needed reprogramming so that the correct time adjustments appear. In short, it takes a great deal of coordination to get the ball rolling and that takes time.

Does It Really Save Energy?

Even though Ben Franklin suggested moving the clocks ahead in his humorous essay, "An Economical Project," the idea was not adopted until World War I. Called "summer daylight saving time," the practice was put in place to conserve much-needed fuel in Great Britain, Germany and the United States. It allowed factory workers on the evening shifts to do their jobs without artificial light. During World War II clocks were turned forward in the U.S. from Feb. 9, 1942, to Sept. 30, 1945. During the same time, the British clocks were pushed ahead two hours in summer and one in the winter.

In the average U.S. home, 25 percent of all the electricity we use is for lighting and small appliances such as TVs, VCRs and stereos. Use of these appliances is directly connected to when we rise and when we go to bed, with much of the use occurring when the family is home in the evening. By "extending the daylight" it is thought that we can reduce the amount energy we consume.

The Calculations

The reduction in Arab oil exports in the 1970s caused a fuel shortage in the United States. To conserve energy, Congress enacted daylight-saving time from Jan. 6 to Oct. 27, 1974, and from Feb. 23 to Oct. 26, 1975. Based on consumption figures for that time, The Department of Transportation concluded that daylight-saving time might result in electricity savings of 1 percent in March and April, equivalent to roughly 100,000 barrels of oil daily over the two months. These savings were calculated from Federal Power Commission data for only four daylight-saving time transitions -- in the winter, spring and fall of the 1974-1975 experiment.

In her testimony before the House Science Committee in 2001, Linda L. Lawson, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy, U.S. Department of Transportation, reminded her audience of a few things to consider. First and foremost was the idea that dramatic lifestyle changes have occurred since the seventies. Also, due to the limited data sample, the findings were judged "probable," rather than conclusive. While some theoretical studies of home heating fuel consumption identified small savings due to daylight saving time, no potential increases in travel demand and gasoline use due to DST were identified at that time. The lack of actual data precluded an estimation of total daylight-saving time energy savings.

This year, Dr. Adrienne Kandal of the California Energy Commission's Demand Analysis Office, wrote a paper titled 'Electricity Savings From Early Daylight Saving Time.' She predicts that the extended daylight-saving time could reduce the 7PM peak electricity demand by about three percent from March 11-31. (See the California Energy Commission's 'Saving Time, Saving Energy' page.)

So, Why Not All Year?

Getting up with the very late sunrises in the deep winter months caused concern for much of the country according to polls and the savings are thought to be negligible because of the way people use energy those times of year. The late start to the day results in almost as much power use as the early evenings in the months of November thru February so, for the most part, sticking to Standard Time makes sense.

Adverse Effects for Your Gadgets

Any software programmed before the 2005 DST law change could result in time clock problems for your computer. Microsoft even warned that for the first three weeks after DST begins, users of its calendar programs "should view any appointments ... as suspect until they communicate with all meeting invitees." Cellular devices like BlackBerries, Treos and Windows Mobile smartphones may require you to download an update. However, DVR machines like TiVo are expected to update without any gliches. Of course, your VCR is another story. Experts say you may just have to deal with your inaccurate clock while DST lasts (another soultion: replace your VCR with a DVD player).

Chaos in Change: Some Fun Facts

• During the 1950s and 1960s, each U.S. locality could start and end daylight-saving time as desired. One year there were 23 different pairs of DST dates in Iowa alone! This resulted in miles of confusion, especially when it came to transportation routes, radio programs and business hours. The problem was finally resolved when The Uniform Time Act was signed into law by President Johnson in 1966.



• Two states, Arizona and Hawaii, don't observe DST like the rest of the country. Before 2005, certain counties in Indiana observed DST while others did not. Confusion eventually lead lawmakers to estalbished a standardized system for the entire state. Now all of Indiana observes DST.



• Europe has been observing daylight-saving time for decades, but at one point there were too many time zones in areas that had cross-border commuters. A person with a 30-minute commute could leave the house at 7AM to arrive at the office at 6:30AM! But the reverse situation caused more bleary eyes ... when the commuter had to leave at 6AM to arrive on work at time at 7:30AM with a drive time of only 30 minutes. A U.N. commission changed the time zones to be based on regions to make it easier on businesses. Then, ultimately, the European Union standardized daylight-saving time in 1996.