Autoglass, the UK’s leading vehicle glass repair and replacement specialist, is supporting the Lighter Later campaign to trial a change to daylight saving time.
Autoglass has partnered with 10:10’s Lighter Later campaign to call for a three-year trial to shift the UK clocks forward by one hour throughout the year.
Single Double Summer Time (SDST) would mean Brits would set their clocks to GMT+1 in winter and GMT+2 in summer and the sun would rise and set one hour later throughout the year.
If these changes were made, the UK would benefit from a considerable improvement in road safety, as bringing the clocks forward an hour would allow people to make afternoon and early evening journeys while it is still light.
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) estimates that the shift would save approximately 80 lives each year in the UK.
Children between the ages of five and 15 and elderly people are the groups likely to benefit most from the change.
As well as positive environmental changes, the move would bring benefits to the UK economy from lowered energy costs, reduced crime and lower NHS costs in dealing with road casualties.
Matthew Mycock, managing director at Autoglass said, “The safety of UK motorists is our top priority. We support the bid to change the UK’s clocks, as it would significantly reduce motoring accidents, with 40 per cent of fatal and serious injuries sustained by drivers between the hours of 7.00pm and 8.00am.
“As an organisation which deals with 1.5 million customers every year, supporting Lighter Later allows us to play an important role in the bid to reduce the number of accidents on UK roads by raising awareness of road safety issues, including the dangers of poor visibility in the darker nights.”
“Low light means drivers struggle to clearly see objects and hazards, and it also places cyclists and pedestrians at high risk. A change to SDST could save millions of pounds in emergency and medical costs and spare thousands of people the pain and anguish which comes from road accidents every year.”
Madeline Carroll at Lighter Later said, “It’s time we put an end to daylight robbery. The road safety case for change is clear; lighter evenings save lives. They also boost the economy, and make us happier and healthier.
"Polls have shown for years that the public clearly prefer lighter evenings. With Autoglass® joining major backers from the FA to Greenpeace supporting in the proposals, MPs have the strongest-ever mandate to vote the Daylight Saving Bill through."
Autoglass’s support of Lighter Later follows recent announcement that it is an official sponsor of Brake and is working closely with the road safety charity to encourage the public to be more visible in the darker winter nights.
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