Daylight saving time ends Nov. 1, but not every part of Canada will turn the clocks back one hour.
Most of Western Canada, including British Columbia and Alberta, won’t be turning their clocks back, thanks to new laws that will keep daylight saving time in place year-round.
However, in some provinces like Ontario, the change won’t apply everywhere. Parts of northwestern Ontario, including Kenora, will switch to permanent daylight saving time on Nov. 1, meaning they won’t have to turn their clocks back for the winter.
With different parts of the country following different time rules — not to mention their own time zones — November could get a little confusing for people with family and friends in other provinces or those working with teams across the country.
Meetings could end up being scheduled at the wrong time, people might show up an hour early (or late), and keeping track of everyone’s schedule could become a bit of a headache.
A map from AccuWeather illustrates the time changes in each province between Oct. 31 and Nov. 1, and how that compares to the U.S. in case any Canadians work or travel there regularly.
AccuWeather
On Nov. 1, the time difference between most of B.C. and Ontario will shrink from three hours to just two, since the former is moving to permanent daylight saving time. So, when it’s 9 a.m. in Vancouver or Surrey, it will be 11 a.m. in Ottawa and Toronto.
B.C. will also be one hour ahead of the West Coast in the U.S. as of Nov. 1, including California, Oregon and Washington. But, oddly enough, it will share the same time as Montana, Colorado and New Mexico.
B.C. will remain one hour ahead of Alaska.
Accuweather
Here’s where things get a little bit muddled, but we’ll do our best to explain.
AccuWeather’s map for Nov. 1 appears to get the time difference wrong, showing Manitoba an hour behind parts of northwestern Ontario. However, the Ontario government has announced that certain communities will stick to daylight saving time year-round to stay in sync with Manitoba.
Toronto, Ottawa, and the rest of Ontario will turn their clocks back Nov. 1.
The change will affect other provinces; for instance, Alberta and Saskatchewan will go from two hours behind Ontario to just one hour behind, while Manitoba will finally share the same time as (most of) Ontario.
Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island will go from being one hour ahead of Ontario to two hours as of Nov. 1. And when it’s 9 a.m. in B.C., it will be 12 p.m. on the east coast.
Newfoundland and Labrador will be two and a half hours ahead of Ontario since it’s already been on its own time zone, and a half an hour ahead of the other Atlantic provinces.
Naturally, not everyone is a fan of daylight saving time. In fact, petitions tend to pop up around this time of year, with people from coast to coast urging their governments to ditch the biannual clock change.
The latest petition, launched earlier this month by a Newfoundland resident, has already gathered more than 8,800 signatures.
“This move will not only beautify our evening skyline but also enrich and protect our community’s health, economy, and lifestyle,” the petition reads.
Discussions on daylight saving time will likely continue to intensify as time goes on (no pun intended). Judging by the comments on social media and other public forums, many Canadians seem to want consistency. If one province or territory decides to adopt permanent daylight saving time, then the rest of the country should follow suit.
What are your thoughts on the time change? Let us know in the comments below!