Pedestrians, drivers warned to be vigilant as daylight time comes to an end this weekend

Vancouver -

Police are warning pedestrians to be vigilant about safety with the end of daylight time this weekend.

Evening commutes will be getting even darker, further reducing visibility on our roads.

ICBC, police, and volunteers handed out free reflectors outside of the Joyce-Collingwood Skytrain station Friday morning as part of a safety campaign.

The goal is to give pedestrians another tool to make themselves more visible.

Nearly half of all pedestrian crashes occur between October and January as the weather changes, daylight hours decrease, and visibility worsens.

Studies have shown the time change may make drivers less alert, which could lead to more accidents.

“With that extra hour of sleep that we're all looking forward to this weekend, there's a tendency to stay up an hour later and change our sleep cycle. So it's really important to stick to what we've been doing already and take that full benefit of that extra hour of sleep,” said Harvey Kooner, a spokesperson for ICBC.

ICBC says pedestrians should be cautious even when they have the right of way, as more than three-quarters of crashes involving pedestrians occur at intersections.

Because of that, drivers are being urged to pay special attention before turning, particularly near transit stops.

Those on foot are reminded to make eye contact with drivers and always use designated crosswalks.

“With pedestrian collisions yearly we see 2,700 collisions with pedestrians in B.C. 2,400 pedestrians are injured in those collisions and unfortunately 52 pedestrians pass away on a yearly basis in British Columbia,” Kooner told CTV News.

B.C. passed legislation to allow the province to observe permanent daylight saving time back in 2019.

However, it’s unclear when that could take effect.

The province says it will only make the change once the rest of the West Coast agrees to do so. Washington and Oregon have passed legislation and California voters have directed lawmakers to do the same, but it hasn’t been a priority because of COVID-19.

The clocks roll back an hour at 2 a.m. on Sunday.