Changeover to winter time on Sunday This weekend lasts one hour longer
Forward? Back? What was that again? Standard time starts again on October 27. And although the time change will give us an extra hour's sleep this time, the concept is not popular.
09.10.2024, 14:45
26.10.2024, 14:50
dpa
How do I set the clock?
Early on Sunday morning, it's that time again: the clocks are set back from 3.00 am to 2.00 am. This means that in Switzerland and in most European countries, standard time, commonly known as winter time, will once again apply.
The advantage of the change for many people is that they can sleep an hour longer on Sundays and it gets light earlier in the morning.
How long has the time change been in place in Switzerland?
Standard time in Switzerland has been Central European Time for over 125 years. In 1981, the Swiss Confederation introduced summer time, following its European neighbors. Since 1996, all countries in the European Union (EU) and Switzerland have unanimously set their clocks one hour forward on the last Sunday in March and one hour back on the last Sunday in October.
What are winter and summer time for?
There are mainly economic reasons for this agreement. Daylight saving time was introduced in Europe in 1973 in response to the oil crisis and with the idea of saving energy.
The time shift was intended to gain an hour of daylight for businesses and households. However, the desired ecological effect did not materialize. Opponents of the time change have therefore gained the upper hand in recent years
The time change is to be abolished - but it will take time
The possible abolition of the seasonal time change has become a topic of political debate in recent years, particularly in the EU. The EU Commission was already planning to abolish the change between summer and winter time in 2018. No binding decisions have been made to date. This is because the European governments have been unable to agree on whether they want to keep summer or winter time permanently.
How do I remember the time change? The best mnemonic devices:
- Garden furniture: In summer you put the garden furniture outside, in winter you put it back in the shed.
- The time change is like a thermometer: In summer the temperatures are plus, in winter minus.
- You always set the clock towards summer: forward in spring , back in fall.
- Hibernation: In winter, you get an extra hour's sleep because the clocks are turned back.
- Spring tiredness: In spring, you lose an hour's sleep because the clocks are set forward.
- In SPRINGyou have to get up EARLIER: Because the clocks are set forward.
When does summer time begin?
Winter time begins on the last Sunday in October. On March 31 of the following year, the clocks are then set forward again by one hour. Daylight saving time will then apply again.
