Advantages and Disadvantages of Daylight Savings Time Plus DST Dates for the USA
The debate over whether Daylight Savings Time is advantageous or constitutes a negative has raged on ever since Daylight Savings Time was first suggested back in 1895. It took the First World War to get some countries like the United States, Germany and the United Kingdom to adopt it and even that was not enough as many of them abolished DST soon after the war. Over time though and after a lot of changes, DST is finally being used in a number countries around the world but it still has its opponents to this day.
For what reasons have some nations decided to adopt Daylight Savings Time and why are there people who are opposed to it?
The Advantages of Daylight Savings Time
These are some of the reasons why some people promote DST and why it is being used nowadays:
1. Effect on Road Traffic Accidents: Studies carried out in the UK and US showed that the extra daylight in the evenings reduced the number of fatalities from traffic accidents. This may be because people are more careful drivers during daylight hours.
2. Effect on Energy Use: A lot of studies have also reported that during DST months, people used less energy. This they attributed to the hours of extra daylight which caused people to need artificial lighting much later and because people tended to spend more time outdoors.
3. Effect on Business: Major retailers and other businesses such as sporting product manufacturers report significant increases in their revenues during DST months. This is because DST allows people to shop more and participate in more sporting activities at the end of the day.
4. Effect on Tourism and Transportation: Daylight Savings Time allows for more daylight hours which induce tourists to stay out later and spend more money. DST also boosts transportation as taxis, buses and trains get increased business at the end of the day when more people stay out later.
5. Effect on Health: DST provides extra daylight at the end of the day during which people could partake in exercise and other activities beneficial to their health.
6. Effect on Crime: Studies show that there is a reduction in crime during DST months. Since most crimes are committed after daylight hours, the added hours of daylight reduces the period during which these crimes can be perpetrated.
7. Effect on Leisure Time and Entertainment: Extra daylight hours at the end of the day gives people more time to take part in recreational activities such as seeing a movie or attending the gym, which in turn lead to other effects such as those benefiting their health and the economy.
The Disadvantages of Daylight Savings Time
The following are reasons why some people say Daylight Savings Time should not be used:
1. Complexity: The Daylight Savings Time rules and dates have been changed several times and for many people this may hard to keep up with it or to adjust to. Majority of the countries of the world (especially in Africa and Asia) do not observe DST and people who work across time zones may find it hard to accommodate the time changes. This is also seen in the US where not all of its parts implement DST.
2. Effect on Agricultural Activity: People involved in agriculture have complained that less sunlight in the mornings is disadvantageous to their work. The types of farming that handle livestock such as cattle and poultry are largely affected because the animals find it difficult to adjust to the time changes.
3. Effect on Health: The shift in time during DST causes sleep deprivation and can cause poor health in some people. Medical devices such as pacemakers or defibrillators and glucose monitors have to be adjusted; serious consequences may result if this is ignored. Some studies have also found that more heart attacks tend to occur after DST is begun and that suicide rates also increase.
4. Economic Effects: DST causes changes in meeting times, travel, billing, broadcast times, and so on, which all cause a negative effect on the productivity of the economy. Enormous costs are usually expended to reschedule meetings and travel times, correct billing charges and records and to change broadcast timing to coincide with periods of maximum viewing. Many companies and industries invest a lot of capital into implementing solutions that will help their businesses cope with the effect of DST.
5. Effect on Electronic and Computer-Based Services: The changes in the times at which DST begins or ends, and the extensions that are sometimes added on can cause electronics and computers to malfunction. Most may have been preset during installation to adopt and/or end DST at particular dates and any changes may lead to errors in these machines and create problems for the individuals, industries or companies that make use of them.
6. Effect on Crime: Some countries have stopped using DST because it meant workers and children had to get up earlier (when it was still dark) to go work and school respectively. There were concerns about crimes which occur during this period. Also, DST causes people to stay out longer and thus, exposes them to becoming victims of violent crime.
Addendum: All the studies mentioned above are not absolute. There are other studies which have found contradictory results and this contributes to the reasons why the arguments for and against Daylight Savings Time continue.
Dates for Daylight Savings Time in the United States of America (USA) for 2013 - 2030
According to greenwichmeantime.com, the following are exceptions to DST dates for the USA:
"Daylight Saving Time, for the U.S. and its territories, is NOT observed in Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and the state of Arizona (not the Navajo Indian Reservation, which does observe it). Navajo Nation participates in the Daylight Saving Time policy, due to its large size and location in three states"2013: Starts March 10 and ends November 3
2014: Starts March 9 and ends November 2
2015: Starts March 8 and ends November 1
2016: Starts March 13 and ends November 6
2017: Starts March 12 and ends November 5
2018: Starts March 11 and ends November 4
2019: Starts March 10 and ends November 3
2020: Starts March 8 and ends November 1
2021: Starts March 14 and ends November 7
2022: Starts March 13 and ends November 6
2023: Starts March 12 and ends November 5
2024: Starts March 10 and ends November 3
2025: Starts March 9 and ends November 2
2026: Starts March 8 and ends November 1
2027: Starts March 14 and ends November 7
2028: Starts March 12 and ends November 5
2029: Starts March 11 and ends November 4
2030: Starts March 10 and ends November 3
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