Ottawa-Gatineau residents react as PQ pledges to abolish time change in 2027

Clocks go back one hour on November 1st, and for Quebec, it could be the end of an era. It should be the last time. We will consult the experts, and we'll prepare our work plan, and we'll do so correctly. The new Parti Québécois government wants to table a bill in the coming months that would abolish the annual daylight savings time changes. But Ottawa and Gatineau are so interconnected. Businesses work across borders. Some people may live here and work there. Some say they're worried that the changes might mess with everyday life. You're going to get a lot of people arriving to work late or early, all throughout different times of the year. It will be very chaotic to try and keep a handle on everything, for sure. I live in Ottawa and I work here, so it'll be a little weird, but we'll see how it goes. Obviously, it'll cause a bit of efforts from the Ontario side. A lot of people travel across the bridge and interprovincial every day. According to Statistics Canada's 2021 census, the most recent data available, more than one in four Gatineau residents in the labor force cross a bridge into Ontario for their jobs. In an email to CBC, the Treasury Board of Canada, who employs federal public servants, say since the legislation isn't passed, it won't speculate on impacts to the public service. When it comes to cross-border business dealings, the Ottawa Board of Trade says it's too soon to tell how extensive the impacts could be, but the proposed changes could have serious consequences. I think there would be a level of disruption that we've never had to face before, to really sort of unpick what the challenges created would be. And again, from personal schedules to school, to transit, think about that, to shopping, to hopping across the river for dinner with friends. I think it extends to all of our activities. Ottawa Vanier MPP Lucille Collard says one way to negate any potential negative impacts is to follow Quebec's lead. The provinces are separated by a bridge that people cross numerous times over the day. Some people work in Quebec or in Ontario and live on the other side and that would create a lot of inconvenience if we were not aligned. CBC News reached out to the Ontario government but did not receive a response. However, in 2020, Doug Ford's government passed a bill to stop changing the clocks if New York and Quebec made similar moves. As for the Parti Quebecois, there's no timeline for when this bill will be tabled and they don't have a majority and so they'll rely on cooperation with other MNAs in order to get it passed. Cameron Waller, CBC News, Ottawa.