The same thing remains: Twice a year the clock is turned. The pleasant side effect this time: there is an extra hour of Sunday sleep.
Braunschweig – Back to winter mode: on Sunday the clocks are set back from 3 a.m. to 2 a.m. This means that normal time, also known as winter time, applies again in Germany and in most European countries.
Although politicians in Berlin and Brussels announced the imminent abolition of the conversion years ago, it still exists – and there is no end in sight.
On the contrary, there are more signs that things will be continued. Because the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB), which is responsible for the distribution of the legal time in Germany, has just extended the contract for the operation of the DCF77 transmitter. The long-wave transmitter in Mainflingen near Frankfurt am Main remains the most important medium for spreading the time, the Braunschweig authority recently announced.
According to the PTB, millions of radio-controlled clocks throughout Europe receive the transmitted time signals. Without DCF77, the time displays at train stations, airports and in radio and television stations would not work. According to the Braunschweig physicists, the systems are also well prepared for the changeover this weekend.
Clear majority in rejects time change
A clear majority in Germany (71 percent) rejects the twice-yearly clock change, according to a representative survey by the Yougov opinion research institute. One or the other should look forward to an hour more sleep on Sunday night.
The EU Commission actually planned in 2018 to abolish the change between summer and winter time. In 2019, the EU Parliament also spoke out in favor of abolishing the time change in 2021. However, there is still a problem with the EU countries: They would have to clarify whether they want permanent summer or winter time. So far, however, the governments have not found a common position. The declared aim of the change was once to be able to make better use of the daylight. dpa
