Double Summer Time?

[Naughty Nigel]

I was interested to read a BBC News article this morning about harmonising our clocks with Central European Time.

See BBC News Article

I like this idea, especially when travelling to Europe. There is nothing worse than having to get up at 3.30 am to catch a 6.00 am flight only to arrive (already exhausted) at lunchtime. The alternative is to arrive the day before and stay overnight, but that is expensive and wastes time.

Meanwhile, when our European neighbours travel to the UK they have time for a lay in, and still arrive here in time for breakfast!

Will the idea take off I wonder? I certainly like the idea of lighter evenings. It would also mean that we don't have to get up quite so early to catch those wonderful photographs around dawn.

[snaarman]

Re: Double Summer Time?

Oh yes please.

I am sick and tired of dark evenings in the winter. Everyone complains when we put the clocks back to GMT. No-one wants it. Why do we do it?

Grrr.

[StephenL]

Re: Double Summer Time?

I just wish they'd do away with clock changing completely and stick with GMT the whole year round. [grump] Why invent a time zone in the first place if you're going to then keep messing it around? [/grump]

[Naughty Nigel]

Re: Double Summer Time?

Oh yes please.

I am sick and tired of dark evenings in the winter. Everyone complains when we put the clocks back to GMT. No-one wants it. Why do we do it?

Grrr.

I remember a similar trial in the late 1960's (I think) when we kept BST all year round.

There were complaints from Scots that it was too dark in the mornings, and that it was unsafe for children going to school; although all the statistics show that coming home form school is much more dangerous.

(Living in the north east of England it can be dark in the mornings here too, but I would rather have any daylight in the evenings.)

There was also a report of a coach crash in Scotland involving school children, and attributed to the dark conditions, which I believe resulted in the whole scheme being abandoned. However, a journalist who investigated this report a few years ago could find no supporting evidence, and it seems the whole story was either made up or misreported.

Presumably if the Scots gain independence we can do what we want with our clocks anyway.

[Bikie John]

Re: Double Summer Time?

I just wish they'd do away with clock changing completely and stick with GMT the whole year round. [grump] Why invent a time zone in the first place if you're going to then keep messing it around? [/grump]

With you 100%. Well, almost - I don't really care whether its GMT, BST, double summer time or anything else - just pick one the one we like and stick with it. Changing twice a year has long been an anachronism. With technology enabling and requiring us to work at ever more unpredictable hours there really is no need for it nowadays.

I was particularly resentful back in the 70s to be part of the excuse used by some politicos to end the experimental period when we stayed on summer time for a few winters (about 1970 to 72 if memory serves). I was at school and loved it, and the statistics, when they eventually came out, showed that it reduced accidents. But somebody in the reactionary press didn't like it and started fabricating stories about increased casualty rates, and parliament was rushed into a vote before the proper stats came in. Enough MPs were either scared of the press or had their strings pulled by them that they restored the previous arrangement, citing us kids as an excuse. Grrrrr.

Ciao ... John (climbs off hobby horse)

[DerekW]

Re: Double Summer Time?

I thought it was the Scots did not like the dark mornings.

[Bikie John]

Re: Double Summer Time?

I'm not sure that anybody likes dark mornings, Derek. But some mornings are. It's physics. If it doesn't get light till 10, or gets dark at 3, you rejig those parts of the day that require daylight accordingly. Even here in the soft south I had plenty of times when I went to work in the dark and came home in the dark, you just have to get on with it.

I suspect that the proverbial Scottish sheep farmers who didn't like dark mornings were just another political trope like "hard-working families", dreamed up and trotted out for the occasion. That is not to deny the existence of either, or to assert or deny any opinions on their behalf, of course, but in this case I think they were just invented for debate much like all us kids who were in mortal danger.

John

[Otto]

Re: Double Summer Time?

I hate dark mornings, I have enough trouble getting up as it is without having to wait until 10am for some light. If it suits some business to align with CET, let the businesses concerned work 8 to 4 instead of 9 to 5 .

[OM USer]

Re: Double Summer Time?

I just wish they'd do away with clock changing completely and stick with GMT the whole year round. [grump] Why invent a time zone in the first place if you're going to then keep messing it around? [/grump]

+1.

...If it suits some business to align with CET, let the businesses concerned work 8 to 4 instead of 9 to 5 .

Exactly. Of course not all Europe is on CET anyway.

[Ross the fiddler]

Re: Double Summer Time?

I just wish they'd do away with clock changing completely and stick with GMT the whole year round. [grump] Why invent a time zone in the first place if you're going to then keep messing it around? [/grump]

I'll go along with that too. My complaint (I must be learning to be a pom ) is that the daylight saving, summer time was invented by city slicker office workers (that's what they might think they do anyhow) that have no regard for those that have to start early or get up early to travel longer to get to their jobs. Our children (when they were young) would have to get up in the dark in the middle of winter to get ready for school & then as daylight got longer in late spring, the daylight saving time would start & then they were getting up in the dark again. Another thing for us here is after a hot summer's day (something you might wish for there) the night may not cool down much making it uncomfortable to sleep at night, but finally in the cool of the morning sleep comes & then ...... that bl**dy alarm goes off!

[DanH56]

Re: Double Summer Time?

As I start work before 7am I am used to dark mornings and don't care much whether we are on GMT or not, like others here I just wish we would stop changing, it achieves little. As for the coachloads of children involved in various accidents during the early 70's experiment - did these vehicles not have headlights?

[Naughty Nigel]

Re: Double Summer Time?

As I start work before 7am I am used to dark mornings and don't care much whether we are on GMT or not, like others here I just wish we would stop changing, it achieves little. As for the coachloads of children involved in various accidents during the early 70's experiment - did these vehicles not have headlights?

I don't think the reported accidents ever happened, but were used to force the government of the day to abandon the idea.

What is unclear is whether the whole island of Ireland would take part in this experiment, or whether southern Ireland would keep GMT/BST, which would make sense given their geographical position. However, flights from the UK to Ireland would be interesting as we would arrive before we left!

It is also interesting that Portugal uses the same time zone as the UK, but France and Spain are an hour ahead of us!

[dogsbody]

Re: Double Summer Time?

Much simpler to re arrange the working day to 10-3 (2.30) from October to March.

Wishful thinking aside, this subject is always dusted off in the media around this time of year and in October, if the good people of Scotland decide to vote for independence then maybe they could have their own time zone?

[Bikie John]

Re: Double Summer Time?

I don't think the reported accidents ever happened, but were used to force the government of the day to abandon the idea.

Exactly so. Once the real statistics were collated and analysed they showed a reduction in casualties, but by then it was too late.

It is also interesting that Portugal uses the same time zone as the UK, but France and Spain are an hour ahead of us!

Spain being on European time is another politically-inspired fudge. That nice Mr. Franco wanted to emphasise Spain's European-ness and disassociate the country from anything to do with Britain so he got them to go an hour ahead. I wonder if this part of the reason they don't go out for dinner until 10pm (another part being the very hot days).

John