Hoosiers debate Central Time

By Lexie Beach

Dozens of students in Indiana are hurt or killed every year waiting for their school buses in the dark. Indiana State Representative Phil Hinkle has a plan to change that. He wants to move the entire state to Central Time. The proposed time zone change will give Hoosiers an extra hour of sunlight in the morning.

“The biggest reason we need to be put in the Central time zone is for the safety of the kids,” Hinkle said. “It is so dark, so pitch black at 6:15, 6:20 in the morning when the school buses are out, and it’s dark in the suburban areas so you can only imagine what it’s like out in the rural areas. That one hour of light will make a big difference.”

Victims of Morning Darkness

Ziang Ke, 15

• October 2, 2007 – Six-year-old Dynasty Wortham of Lafayette, Ind. was walking to school with her sister and brother at 7:00 a.m. She was hit by a car and died because the driver couldn’t see her.

• March 5, 2007 – A 15-year-old girl was abducted  from her bus stop in Fishers, Ind. at 6:50 a.m. and raped

• March 23, 2007 – A 14-year-old Marshall Middle School student was abducted from her bus stop at 7:00 a.m. and raped.

• September 6, 2008 – A young Indianapolis boy was walking to school at 6:00 a.m. when he was hit by a pick-up truck and died.

• October 7, 2010 – New Castle students Dalton Hatfield and Donald Wethington were walking to school at 7:30 a.m. in the dark. A car struck both of them. Eleven-year-old Hatfield died at the scene and 17-year-old Wethington was taken to a hospital with severe injuries.

Dalton Hatfield, 11

Support for Central Time

Supporters of Hinkle’s Central Time legislation include the Central Time Coalition, an organization that aims to educate Hoosiers and promote the benefits of moving the entire state to Central Time. Carmel resident Sue Dillon formed the coalition in April 2009 after hearing about Ke’s fatal accident.

“It’s a tragedy, all the way around, a tragedy—for the families, for the teachers, for the whole education community,” Dillon said. “When those tragedies happen they point out that it’s unsafe and we don’t want any more victims of morning darkness among our students.”

Studies show that Indiana currently has 120 days with sunrises before 7 a.m. However, if Indiana moved to Central Time, it would give the state 315 days of sunrises before 7 a.m. Research shows that earlier sunrises will not only increase safety for children in the morning but also improve their performance in the classroom.

Indiana Sunrise & Sunset Time Zone Chart

“Some kids’ schools start at 7:30. That means they’ve been there in their classrooms in their seats almost an hour before the sun rises,” Dillon said. “They’re not going to perform because their bodies aren’t awake. You might as well write off the first hour of school.”

Who Else Benefits from Central Time?

Thousands of farmers who work in Indiana could also benefit from the switch. The amount of morning darkness pushes working hours into the evening in spring, fall and winter. This reduces time for family and community involvement. The same can also be said for those who work in construction trades or landscaping.

Bill Rieber, an economics professor at Butler University, says many farmers never supported Eastern Time in the first place.

“Farmers were never really in favor of that because they go by the sun, not by the time,” Rieber says. “They’re still working at 8 in the evening because it’s light and everyone else is home relaxing, so they’re kind of on a different pace than the rest of the state.”

Central Time Critics

The Indiana Chamber of Commerce argues that from a commerce point of view, it is more effective for Indiana to be aligned with New York and Eastern Time.

Marcus Fehman, manager of business development for the chamber, is a proponent of Eastern Time.

“We’re on time now with the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq. Even though we do commerce with the West Coast, it doesn’t really make much of a difference to them if we’re on Eastern Time or Central Time. Is California going to be that upset if we’re 3 hours behind them or 2 hours behind them? Not as much as New York or places on the East Coast that are doing business with us and waiting an hour for us to get out of bed and get to work.”

Fehman argues that many supporters of Central Time don’t understand how the switch might negatively affect the state’s commerce.

“It’s just more strategically advantageous to be in sync with the East Coast rather than the West Coast,” says Fehman. “That one hour doesn’t necessarily sound that significant to us on a day to day basis but when it comes to the commerce aspect of it, it does have a tremendous effect.”

The Debate Continues

Eighty counties are on Eastern Time. Twelve counties are on Central Time. So what time is it in Indiana?

County Divisions

“Daylight Saving Time, DST, eliminated confusion among the states as to what time Indiana was on,” said Hinkle. “The central time zone will eliminate among Hoosiers as to what time Indiana is on.”

Hoosiers are divided into two camps. Some prefer more morning sunlight while others prefer more evening sunlight.

“We think this is a public policy decision that needs to be based on health, safety and welfare, not personal preference, because the personal preferences are definitely split,” said Dillon. “I think we have to keep our priorities. I mean, how important is it for you to have evening sunlight if it means two New Castle kids are going to be hit by a car?”

Hinkle plans to present Central Time legislation to the Indiana General Assembly in January. It must pass both the state House and the Senate. Governor Mitch Daniels must also sign the law. The final decision, however, is up to the US Department of Transportation, which has the power to switch the state from Eastern Time to Central Time.

Meanwhile, Hinkle continues to urge Hoosiers to consider the time change and how it will help keep our children safe.

“Those who say ‘Leave it alone, don’t touch it, its fine the way it is,’ it’s not fine the way it is.”

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