The biannual changing of the clocks is linked to an increase in car crashes that kill more than 30 people and nearly 37,000 deer each year, according to a study published Wednesday in the journal Current Biology.
The switch from daylight saving time is associated with an increase in deer deaths.
According to an analysis of crash data from 23 states between 1994 and 2021, the shift to standard time in fall is linked with an increase in the number of vehicles colliding with deer.
During the two week period around the switch from daylight saving time to standard time, nearly 10% of deer accidents happened.
The researchers found that deer and related species are more active during the day than at night, with most accidents occurring in the hours between sunset and sunrise.
The data showed that the week after the clock changed in fall, there was a 16% jump in accidents.
Changes in the deer's behavior, as well as more drivers after dark, can be attributed to the pattern.
A year-round shift to daylight saving time would have significant benefits for deer and humans alike, the researchers proposed, potentially saving the lives of an estimated 36,550 deer and 33 humans each year, as well as preventing 2,054 human injuries.
Most of the U.S. will fall back an hour on Sunday. According to polls, most Americans don't like the twice-yearly change, but there isn't much agreement on what to replace it with. Heart attacks and strokes, sleep deprivation, and an increase in fatal car crashes are all linked to the biannual change. The Senate unanimously passed a bill in March that would end the twice-yearly practice of daylight saving time and make it permanent. The fate of the bill is not certain.
More than 2 million people. That is how many deer-vehicle crashes there are in the U.S. White-tailed deer and mule deer are more common in the eastern and western U.S., so they are more likely to be involved in these crashes.
The researchers think that a permanent shift to daylight saving time would cut the number of deer-vehicle accidents, but that would be wrong. There would be an additional 73,660 deer-vehicle collision under permanent standard time, 66 additional human deaths and 4,140 additional injuries, the researchers estimated.
How to get back to normal without missing a beat.
It's annoying to change the clock. The alternatives are equally as good. It's called the Atlantic.
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