A quick public service announcement from Newton’s Transportation Advisory Group!
Sunday November 3 marks the end of Daylight Saving Time. This change means that sunset, which is already sadly early, will now take place at 4:37PM. The earliest sunset happens on December 7 at 4:12PM, which is only a month away.
Such an early plunge into darkness has a real safety impact on families, particularly kids coming home from after-school programs and activities.
Please remind your kids and any adults who might be caring for them to be extra careful after school. For walkers, dress visibly, use marked crosswalks when possible, look before crossing streets, and don’t dart out into roads or parking lots. For bicyclists, use a white front light and rear red light or reflector (it’s the law!), be predictable, and wear bright or reflective clothing if possible. For drivers, be extra attentive for pedestrians and cyclists: drive slowly and look carefully at the dark corners of intersections and crosswalks in case pedestrians are waiting.
Also, as kids bundle up against New England’s winter winds, jacket and sweatshirt hoods can limit peripheral vision. Have them take an extra second of two to look down evening streets for cars and bikes approaching.
While we can’t make longer days and the warmth of spring come any faster, a little extra attention and care by everyone on the road can help us all get through winter safely.
Love the dramatic headline! I only wish we had an ominous sound effect to go with it
Darkness On The Edge Of Town
Bruce Springsteen
Well they’re still racing out at the trestles
But that blood it never burned in her veins
Now I hear she’s got a house up in Fairview
And a style she’s trying to maintain
Well if she wants to see me
You can tell her that I’m easily found
Tell her there’s a spot out ‘neath Abraham’s bridge, tell her
There’s a darkness on the edge of town
There’s a darkness on the edge of town
Well everybody’s got a secret, son
Something that they just can’t face
Some folks spend their whole lives trying to keep it
They carry it with them every step that they take
‘Til some day they just cut it loose
Cut it loose or let it drag ’em down
Where no one asks any questions
Or looks too long in your face
In the darkness on the edge of town
In the darkness on the edge of town
Some folks are born into a good life
And other folks get it anyway anyhow
Yeah and I lost my money and I lost my wife
Them things don’t seem to matter much to me now
Tonight I’ll be on that hill ’cause I can’t stop
I’ll be on that hill with everything I got
With our lives on the line where dreams are found and lost
I’ll be there on time and I’ll pay the cost
For wanting things that can only be found
In the darkness on the edge of town
In the darkness on the edge of town
A good reminder that also applies for the late sunrises in December and January!
Remember that middle schools start very early in Newton and lots of kids are walking to school when it’s still dark or dim!
Sigh. No other Springsteen fans? Boo…
@Fig-
You can’t start a fire
You can’t start a fire without a spark
This gun’s for hire
Even if I’m just dancin’ in the dark.