More changes in Utah's area-code layout are eminent, probably later this year.
The Public Service Commission will hold public meetings March 14, 15, 16 and 22 to receive public comments on upcoming "area code relief" destined to affect the greater Salt Lake area.In July 1999, the North American Numbering Plan Administration announced that area code relief would be needed for the 801 area code. The area code is projected to run out of available prefix codes during the first quarter of 2001.
The shortage is due, in part, to increasing demands for additional telephone numbers by consumers, new local telephone service providers that reserve blocks of phone numbers and technical requirements in how phone numbers are assigned.
Two different relief proposals will be presented and explained at the public meetings. One, proposed by the PSC, is a traditional geographic split, which requires half of the 801 customers to change to a new area code. The second proposal, recommended by the telecommunications industry, is an all-services overlay. With an overlay there would be multiple area codes for the geographic area affected. An overlay would not require existing phone customers to change their area code, but new customers would have a different area code and all calls in or to the overlay area would require ten-digit dialing.
A change to one of the proposals is likely later this year.
The meeting schedule has the March 14 meeting set for 7 p.m. in the Women's Council Hall, 301 W. 500 North, Provo; the March 15 meeting at 7 p.m. in Bountiful High School, 695 S. Orchard Drive; the Thursday, March 16, meeting at 7 p.m. in the Salt Lake City Public Library's Day-Riverside Branch, 1575 W. 1000 North; and the March 22 meeting at 7 p.m. in the Weber County Commission chambers, 2380 Washington Blvd., Ogden.
Following the public meetings, the PSC will review the input before issuing a final decision for the new area code.