The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission will hold an educational meeting regarding the end of the 812 area code at Bloomington High School South on March 7.
High demand for the area code resulting from increased use of cell phones, faxes and computers, population growth, and economic progress has contributed to projections that available numbers will run out by 2015.
The North American Numbering Plan Administrator, run by data-collection company NeuStar, has outlined seven potential alternatives for the state to follow in the implementation of a new area code.
According to the “Petition of the North American Numbering Plan Administrator on Behalf of the Indiana Telecommunications Industry for Relief of the 812 NPA,” these seven alternatives are:
- An all-services-distributed overlay, in which a new area code would be applied to the entire geographic area covered by 812. For this plan, the NANPA projects a lifespan for the new area code of 71 years.
- A two-way geographic split, which would set a boundary line to the “west of Gosport, Ellettsville, Stanford, Bedford, Mitchell, Orleans, Paoli, English, and Leavenworth.” On the west side of the boundary, the new area code has a projected lifespan of 60 years. Another new area code on the east side of the boundary would have a projected lifespan of 84 years.
- Another alternative two-way geographic split, this time with an east-to-west boundary line that “runs south of Oakton and Lyons and turns west of Elnora, Plainville, and Montgomery.” It “continues south of Loogootee, Shoals, French Lick, and Paoli and turns north of Campbellsburg, Salem, Pekin, Henryville, and New Washington.” The northern portion of this split’s new area code is projected to last 67 years, while the southern portion’s new area code would last 76 years.
- A second east-west geographic split that “runs south of Oakton, Lyons and Owensburg and turns west of Crane, Trinity, Williams, Shoals, and Dubois” and continues “south of French Lick and Paoli and turns north of Campbellsburg, Salem, Pekin, Henryville, and North Washington.” In this case, both new area codes are projected to last 71 years.
Two concentrated overlays were other possibilities. In these scenarios, a new area code would be introduced into certain areas where 812 is currently the area code before gradually being introduced to the rest of the area.
- In the first concentrated overlay, the boundary line would run “north of Bruceville, Bicknell, and Plainville” and turn “east of Montgomery, Alfordsville, Glendale, Dubois, Birdseye, St. Anthony, and Bandon,” with a boundary line extending “in a northwestern to southwestern direction.”
- The second concentrated overlay would follow the same boundary line, but Plainville would move to the other area.
In both cases, the area codes are projected to last 71 years.
- The last alternative is another concentrated overlay, this time including Plainville, Montgomery, Alfordsville, Glendale, Dubois, Birdseye, St. Anthony, and Bandon in one area and Bruceville, Bicknell, Campbellsburg, Pekin, Henryville, New Washington, Salem, Leavenworth, Corydon, Lanesville, Charlestown, Sellersburg, Galena, New Albany, New Middletown, Elizabeth, Central, Georgetown, Marengo, Palmyra, Ramsey, English, Miltown, Crandall, Laconia, Fredericksburg, and Wickliffe in the other.
Of the seven alternatives, NANPA has suggested the first one because it would have the least impact on businesses.
The geographic splits, the organization said, would require about half of consumers to change their numbers and would require roughly the same percentage of businesses to change their advertising to accommodate new numbers. The concentrated overlays, it noted, would require a complete overlay after a short period of time, which would require substantial effort from the IURC to educate consumers prior to both overlays.
IURC is currently taking the first step of changing the area code, described by NANPA as the “network preparation and customer education period.” It has six months to get it done.
Over that time period, IURC will be holding 10 public meetings in small, medium and large cities in the state, including Bloomington at Bloomington High School South on March 7 at 5:30 p.m.
State officials at the meeting will attempt to educate consumers about the process and listen to public feedback as to which alternative model they should follow during implementation of the new area code.
For those unable to attend the meeting, the IURC is accepting feedback by mail at the Indiana Office of Utility Consumer Counselor.
Originally published in Ellettsville Journal, 2013. Republished here for archival and portfolio purposes.