Several years in NZ, we changed that start and end dates for DST so that the start was earlier in the year and the end later - I think it was 3 weeks at each end or something like that. One of the reasons put forward is that it save electricity as you get more daylight at each end, so less need for lighting.
At this time of year (Autumn down here now) the mornings are starting to get a little too dark for my liking, but the evenings are still good.