The Return to Standard Time Can Be Deadly

Two professors at Carnegie Mellon University reported last year that pedestrians walking around dusk are nearly three times more likely to be struck and killed by cars in the days following the return to standard time than just before the time change.

Ending daylight saving time results in about 37 more U.S. pedestrian deaths around 6 p.m. in November compared with October, according to the study by Professors Paul Fischbeck and David Gerard.

It’s not the darkness itself that’s the problem, but rather the lack of adjustment to earlier nighttime that’s the killer, the professors said. They conducted a study of 7 years of nationwide traffic fatalities and calculated the risk per mile walked for pedestrians. They found that per-mile risk jumps 186 percent from October to November—and then drops 21 percent in December.

The December drop-off indicates the increased risk is caused by the trouble both drivers and pedestrians have adjusting when darkness suddenly comes an hour earlier, the researchers said.

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Back in 1999, Kathy Konicki, safety director for Nationwide Insurance, was warning about the dangers associated with the end of daylight saving time.

“The time change has been known to leave many of us feeling fatigued, which can pose some safety risks at home and at the office,” Konicki said, adding that some of the things to keep in mind about the switch back to standard time are:

• Fatigue—Studies suggest that it takes people who work traditional hours several days to fully readjust their sleep schedule after the time change. While it may seem a welcome gift to get an extra hour of sleep as opposed to losing an hour in the spring, “Regardless, there is a physiological consequence to changing our clocks,” Konicki said. “So don’t be surprised if you feel a bit sluggish for the first week or so of November.”


• Accidents—Evidence suggests that time changes increase safety problems both at work and at home. “Just being aware of the increased risk of accidents in the period immediately following the time change may help you stay alert,” Konicki said. “And remember to avoid building up a sleep debt in the days before the change.”

Safety professionals have long used the start and end of daylight saving time as reminders for performing recurring safety tasks. On its website, the University of Oklahoma Police Department suggests using the occasion of setting your clocks forward or back as a cue to:

• Check and replace the batteries in your smoke and carbon monoxide (CO) alarms. Replace any smoke alarms older than 10 years. Replace any CO alarms older than 5 years.


• Prepare a disaster supply kit (water, food, flashlights, batteries, blankets, etc.). Once you’ve created your disaster kit, use the semi-annual time change to check its contents (including testing/replacing flashlight batteries).


• Check storage areas for hazardous materials. Discard any that are outdated, no longer used, or in poor condition.

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Still another thing to remember when you “fall back” is that shift workers on duty that night will generally work an extra hour, for a total of 9 hours of work, and they must be paid for all of those hours.

For shift workers, changing work hours can be the norm rather than the exception. Tomorrow we’ll look at some of the hazards posed by shift work, and how you can train your shift workers to stay safe and healthy.