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<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; Remember to set your clocks ahead one hour before bed tonight, but that&#8217;s not the only thing to keep in mind as daylight saving time begins.</p><p>Sunday&#8217;s &#8220;spring forward&#8221; could mean a risky Monday morning commute for drivers and pedestrians.</p><p>One of the most anticipated &#8220;signs of spring&#8221; arrives this weekend when the clocks &#8220;spring forward&#8221; (daylight saving time officially begins at 2 a.m. Sunday.) It means we lose an hour of our day in exchange for extended daylight hours throughout the summer.</p><p>&#8220;There are two factors contributing to the increased risk following daylight saving time &#8212; drowsiness and darkness,&#8221; says Jana L. Tidwell, manager of Public and Government Affairs for AAA Mid-Atlantic. &#8220;It&#8217;s important that both drivers and pedestrians are aware.&#8221;</p><p><strong>Drowsy Driving</strong></p><p>The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety recently released the most in-depth drowsy driving research ever conducted in the U.S, using footage of everyday drivers, which found drowsy driving is a factor in about 10 percent of all crashes &#8211; that is eight times higher than previous federal estimates.</p><p>In Pennsylvania, PennDOT reports that in 2016, 2,625 crashes and 25 fatalities were attributed to drowsy drivers.</p><p>&#8220;AAA warns that drivers who miss just one or two hours of the recommended seven hours of sleep in a 24-hour period nearly double their risk for a crash,&#8221; Tidwell says.</p><p>The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says 35 percent of U.S. drivers sleep less than the recommended minimum of seven hours daily. In a recent related AAA Foundation survey, nearly all drivers (96 percent) say they view drowsy driving as a serious threat to their safety and a completely unacceptable behavior. However, 29 percent admitted to driving when they were so tired they had a hard time keeping their eyes open.</p><p>The other issue increasing risk with the time change is darkness.</p><p>The Monday morning commute, and the morning commute for several weeks to follow, will be much darker than what drivers are used to, a serious concern because 75 percent of pedestrian fatalities happen when it&#8217;s dark, according to the latest findings from the Governor&#8217;s Highway Safety Association.</p><style>
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<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Bill O&#8217;Boyle</p><p>boboyle@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Bill O&#8217;Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

AAA: Turn your clock ahead, and be extra careful on the roads