Do "it is time for someone to do something" and "it is time someone did something" mean the same thing? [duplicate]
Solution 1:
The nuance in this case comes from the tense of the verb do. This is obvious when we place it in the passive voice, and remove the prepositional clause.
This is present tense, and implies that the something should be done now:
It is time to do something.
This places the doing in the past, implying it should have been done already, and lending a sense of urgency to the task:
It is time something was done.
In conclusion: It is not the one doing the action that lends the urgency, but the juxtaposition of tenses, one of which is in the past.