All a matter of timing with daylight saving

I say, why break the cycle of stupidity north of the Tweed River when politicians do not understand the basics of time in regards to the size of Queensland.

Twin Towns operation manager Dean Holloway is frustrated with the daylight saving time zone. Photo: John Gass / Tweed Daily News. Picture: John Gass

DO COAST residents really want daylight saving?

Ashley Carter (Daily, August 13) wrote: "The Sunshine Coast remains divided over the re-ignited daylight saving debate. A YouGov Galaxy poll showed 55 per cent of Queenslanders backed the change, and only 41 per cent opposed."

I say, why break the cycle of stupidity north of the Tweed River when the George St politicians do not understand the basics of time in regards to the size of Queensland?

How many of the elected representatives know that between the time the sun rises in Brisbane and Mt Isa, there is a difference of three-quarters of an hour?

Yes, that's right, if the sunrise in Brisbane is 0500 hours (+10 hours UTC), Mt Isa's sunrise is about 0545 hours (+10 hours UTC).

Consider this: divide Queensland into two time zones at about the 145 degree east meridian, about where Longreach is. Longreach and east of the longitudinal meridian remaining at 10 hours UTC, no change. All towns and cities, including Mt Isa, like Broken Hill, adopt 0930 hours UTC, which is effectively Adelaide time.

Now before anyone goes off half-cocked, look at a map of Queensland, or the east side of this continent's landmass, then draw a line N-S along the 145 degree east meridian.

It is not such a time split of 30 minutes, yes 30 minutes, that would make little, if any, difference to those west of Longreach when doing business.

But for the benefit of Queensland and the southern states during summer, it is commercially enormous.

So, Queensland, if you think about two times zones as only half-an-hour between the outback and the east coast, it is nothing like the time zone gap between the ears of our state politicians.

BOB BUICK

Mountain Creek

Originally published as All a matter of timing with daylight saving