10-digit phone dialing coming to coastal, Middle Georgia-478 and 912 area codes

[Broken feather]

"SAVANNAH — Ten-digit dialing is coming to coastal and Middle Georgia this year.

Customers in the 912 and 478 area codes will have to start dialing the area code as well as the seven-digit phone number to complete local calls, enabling a new suicide prevention hotline.

Beginning April 24, customers can begin dialing 10 digits in the 912 area code, which includes Savannah, coastal and southeast Georgia, and the 478 area code, which includes Macon and Middle Georgia. If a customer only dials seven digits, a call will still go through.
Starting Oct. 24, 10 digits will be mandatory and a call won't be completed without the area code.
Somos Inc., which administers the North American area code plan, made the announcement last week.
The two Georgia regions are among 82 area codes nationwide making room for the 988 National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, which begins operation in July 2022. Because those 82 area codes use 988 for the first three numbers of some seven-digit phone numbers, the Federal Communications Commission ordered 10-digit dialing. Otherwise phones won't recognize when someone is trying to call the 988 suicide hotline.
Somos said people should reprogram medical alert devices, security and other systems."

I've been dialing 10 digits here in east and NE Georgia for a long time. The biggest hassle was changing my speed dial list.

https://www.ajc.com/news/georgia-ne...e-coastal-georgia/JYUVTK4W3NC6NPI4J27YQTOBYU/

 

[Core Lokt]

It's coming for many places. Too many people and fone numbers.

 

[gunnurse]

It’s been that way in Northwest Georgia for years.

 

[bilgerat]

I remember when I was a kid we only had to dial 4 numbers for local calls in NW Ga

 

[JustUs4All]

I remember when I was a kid and phones didn't have a dial at all. You had to actually talk with an operator and give her the number you wanted to call. LOL

 

[Broken feather]

I remember when I was a kid and phones didn't have a dial at all. You had to actually talk with an operator and give her the number you wanted to call. LOL

A lot of people living in the countryside did not even have phones. If they wanted to call, they had to go to the local store. If you had to contact them, you either went to their house or wrote a letter. I know because I delivered the Brunswick news in Glynn County in 1964-1965. It was a long ride on a bike but I was able to buy a nice fishing pole and tackle. Collections were a hassle.

 

[mrs. hornet22]

I remember when I was a kid and phones didn't have a dial at all. You had to actually talk with an operator and give her the number you wanted to call. LOL

Yep. Me too. I still have some of my childhood books and the inside has my name and phone#. LI-6951.

 

[jiminbogart]

I bet half of you geezers were climbing telephone poles to make them calls down in Bugtussle.

 

[JustUs4All]

Yep. Me too. I still have some of my childhood books and the inside has my name and phone#. LI-6951.

You must have lived in a city. Our number was 694W and the W stood for West.

 

[mrs. hornet22]

You must have lived in a city. Our number was 694W and the W stood for West.

Yep. 5-points in Athens. GO DAWGS!

 

[forsyth793]

Yep. Me too. I still have some of my childhood books and the inside has my name and phone#. LI-6951.

On Willow St off North Av in Atlanta our phone # AT 5550 but that was about 65 years ago..........We lived in Conley before that and didn't have a phone

 

[gobbleinwoods]

Didn't know anywhere still existed you didn't have to dial a 10 digit number.

 

[fishfryer]

BR-549

 

[Milkman]

I remember when I was a kid and phones didn't have a dial at all. You had to actually talk with an operator and give her the number you wanted to call. LOL

Yeah but Jim I heard you rode the school bus with Thomas Edison before he even invented the phone.

 

[sinclair1]

I bet half of you geezers were climbing telephone poles to make them calls down in Bugtussle.

I would put my alligator clips on the neighbors jack on the side of the house and call long distance. Ran a big bill to one gal and got busted and it took several of my Kroger $3 an hour checks to cover it.

 

[trad bow]

All I remember is when we finally got a phone in the early sixties it was on a party line. I never use the phone till after I was fiftee

 

[4HAND]

10 digit local dialing is coming here too.
My 1st memory of dialing was only dialing the last number of the prefix & 4 telephone numbers: 8-3232.
We were on a party line too.

 

[oldfella1962]

All I remember is when we finally got a phone in the early sixties it was on a party line. I never use the phone till after I was fiftee

Yes when I lived in Wisconsin the late 70's we had a party line with about a half dozen other neighbors. Anyway back to the subject when I first moved to the outskirts of Augusta Ga in 2004 we had the seven digit numbers, but about a year or two later they switched to ten.

 

[zedex]

I've been doing the 10 digit thing since being here. I dont care for it. Was looking forward to getting back to 7 when I leave. Oh, well.

Growing up in McIntosh county, as a kid, there were 2 prefixes-- 437 and 832. We used the 5 digit system. If dialing a 437, number, hit 7 and the 4 digit. 832 numbers , use the 2 and 4 digit. I liked that system

 

[ATLFalconsfan80]

Wow....I thought everyone had to do that when they made us change to it years ago...I can honestly say I’ve learned something new today...