Daylight Saving Time Is Starting Soon But Not Everywhere In Canada Will Lose An Hour
Get ready for later sunsets! 🌇
Montreal skyline with a sunset in the background.
Daylight saving time is starting soon but that doesn't mean clocks will change everywhere in Canada and everyone will lose an hour.
Some locations have ditched time changes altogether and other parts of the country are trying to get rid of them.
Daylight saving time — which is also known as DST — is the twice-a-year time change that sets clocks forward one hour from standard time during the summer months and back one hour in the fall.
It's meant to make better use of the natural daylight.
In 2024, daylight saving time starts in Canada on Sunday, March 10 and clocks will change from 2 a.m. to 3 a.m.
That means later sunsets and longer days are on the horizon once we spring forward!
While most people living in Canada will lose an hour on March 10, not everywhere in this country will observe the time change.
Clocks won't change in Yukon, some areas in B.C. (including Dawson Creek, Fort Nelson and more), most of Saskatchewan (including Regina, Saskatoon, Moose Jaw, and more), Southampton Island, and some locations in Quebec.
According to Time and Date, Canada implemented daylight saving time back in 1908 with Port Arthur and Fort William (now Thunder Bay, Ontario) known as the first places in the world to adopt it!
Time zones and daylight saving time are typically regulated by provincial and territorial governments in Canada rather than the federal government.
That's why some places in this country observe the twice-a-year time change while other locations don't.
In 2022, Quebec Premier François Legault said he was "open" to switching to a permanent time but the provincial government hasn't implemented any changes yet.
Alberta held a referendum in 2021 and 50.2% of people who voted were in favour of keeping the time change. Since the referendum results are binding, Alberta continues to use daylight saving time.
In 2020, Yukon got rid of time changes and now the territory is on Yukon Standard Time all year instead.
Politicians in Ontario have been trying to get rid of time changes — which included the passing of the Time Amendment Act in 2020 — but the government needs neighbouring provinces and U.S. states to do the same.
Back in 2019, B.C. passed legislation that outlined the plan to switch to a standard Pacific time for the entire province with Washington, Oregon and California but that hasn't come into effect yet.
So, if you want to ditch the time change that happens twice a year, you'll have to wait and see what your province or territory does.
This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.