Survey says: 9 out of 10 Albertans want permanent daylight time
Premier Jason Kenney supports idea to switch to one clock all year
Nine out of 10 Albertans want to switch to daylight time year-round, the government said Friday in releasing results from a survey conducted late last year.
"As many are aware, government invited Albertans to participate in a survey last year about daylight saving time," Service Alberta Minister Nate Glubish said in a news release Friday.
"Of the 141,000 Albertans who responded, 91 per cent told us they would prefer to stay on summer hours year-round, rather than continue to change their clocks twice a year."
Albertans are advised to set their clocks forward one hour before going to bed Saturday night. Daylight time arrives at 2 a.m. Sunday.
Changing to daylight time year-round would require looking at what other jurisdictions are doing, Glubish said.
Saskatchewan functions on the same clock year-round. British Columbia has passed legislation allowing it to move to one permanent time. Yukon on Sunday will move to daylight time on a permanent basis.
Alberta would need to avoid taking actions that would leave the province "out of sync with our neighbours," Glubish said.
The government is talking to "key organizations and members of the business community" and "actively reaching out to our partners in Eastern Canada to discuss the option of moving together in unison," he said.
Premier Jason Kenney said he supports the idea but noted that the government is canvassing industry leaders to find out where they stand on the issue.
"I think it's becoming more and more obvious that our whole region in North America is shifting in that direction," Kenney said Friday.
In 2017, NDP MLA Thomas Dang pitched the idea to the legislature but it was scrapped after several companies and organizations, including the Oilers, argued against it.