Is daylight saving time working?

The House of Representatives has voted to make daylight saving time permanent in the United States. If the measure is approved by the Senate and becomes law, most Americans would no longer spring forward in March or fall back in November.

For more than a century, changing the clocks has been used to make better use of daylight, but the practice has long divided opinion. Supporters of the bill argue it boosts productivity and removes the disruption of changing the clocks twice a year. Critics warn that permanent daylight saving time could affect health and road safety as people face darker winter mornings.

Around the world, governments have taken different approaches. Some have scrapped seasonal clock changes altogether, while others continue to observe them. We examine why daylight saving time was introduced and whether the case for changing the clocks still stacks up today. Is daylight saving time working?

Contributors:

David Prerau, author of Seize the Daylight: The Curious and Contentious Story of Daylight Saving Time

Jennifer Evans, professor of biomedical sciences at Marquette University, US

Till Roenneberg, professor of chronobiology at the University of Munich, Germany

Joan Costa-Font, professor of health economics at the London School of Economics, UK

(Photo: The turquoise Art Deco clock tower with white clock hands of the Eastern Columbia Lofts in downtown Los Angeles. Credit: (Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Presenter: Tanya Beckett

Producer: Matt Toulson

Researcher: Evie Yabsley

Technical producer: Cameron Ward

Production co-ordiantor: Phoebe Lomas

Production management assistant: Liam Morrey

Editor: Tom Bigwood