Social media reacts to B.C.'s switch to permanent daylight time
Reactions appear to be mixed about the switch to permanent daylight time in B.C.
B.C. Premier David Eby made headlines Monday when he announced the province was scrapping seasonal time changes and switching to permanent daylight time starting Sunday, March 8.
“We are done waiting. British Columbia is going to change our clocks just one more time — and then never again," Eby said at a Monday press conference, adding that B.C.’s new time zone will be called “Pacific Time,” or "PT."
“Every parent knows that changing clocks twice a year causes a significant amount of chaos on already busy lives," Premier Eby said in a statement.
“...This decision isn’t just about clocks. It’s about making life easier for families, reducing disruptions for businesses, and supporting a stable, thriving economy. I am hopeful that our American neighbours will soon join us in ending disruptive time changes.”
Social media was quick to react. Many of the comments were positive, which likely comes as no surprise. Back in 2019, the province held a public consultation and found 93 per cent of the respondents were in favour of scrapping the time change, but residents were not given the option to vote for their preference of permanent daylight or standard time.
During the consultation, 53 per cent of respondents said that should B.C. scrap time changes, it should do so in accordance with other jurisdictions and provinces, the CBC reports.
Three-quarters of favourbale respondents cited health and safety concerns as the basis for their reasoning.
“We need to do that in the Eastern Time Zone too,” reads one comment on The Weather Network’s Facebook page.
“Makes sense,” reads another.
“How do you cut 1 foot off the top of a blanket and sew it onto the bottom and gain anything?”
But other comments were less supportive, with some arguing that permanent daylight time means dark winter mornings:
Others have argued that permanent standard time aligns better with our natural circadian rhythms and with businesses in other states and provinces, but Eby appeared to disagree, arguing that there are already some small communities in B.C. that observe Mountain Time year-round.
Eby told reporters these communities have not experienced any negative impacts from remaining on mountain time year-round and appear to be benefiting from the extra hour of sunlight at the end of the day.
B.C. government says people and businesses will have 8 months to prepare for November 1, 2026, when clocks would normally turn back.
Header image: Made with elements from Canva Pro. David Eby photo: BC NDP/Wikipedia CC BY SA 2.0