Changing the code a tricky business

By JEFF FRANK - Staff Writer | Sunday, July 13, 2008 12:28 AM PDT ∞

Once upon a time, not so long long ago, area codes seemed as permanent as a grease stain on a silk shirt.

People were assigned area codes based on where they lived and never really thought about them as they went about their day-to-day business. Everyone around them had the same numbers, as did nearby cities and in many cases, whole states.

If you wanted to make a call, you dialed seven numbers and before long, Aunt Mabel, the dentist or whomever you were trying to reach was on the other end. The only time people thought about area codes was when they made long-distance calls. Remember them? Before national calling plans?

It wasn't a big deal, because the codes rarely changed. New York City was 212. Los Angeles was 213. Boston was 617. Most of us didn't even need to look up the codes for more familiar numbers.

That's not true anymore. New area codes are passed around like pretzels at a picnic. Since 1982, different parts of San Diego have split from what was once 714 to 619, 858 and/or 760. Now, thanks to a recent Public Utilities Commission ruling, North County faces another change, from 760 to 442.

Four-four-two? That's not an area code. That's an Oldsmobile.

Increased population and use of technology are cited as reasons for the change, which goes into effect Oct. 24, barring the commission reconsidering its decision. That isn't out of the question, given the rising number of protests since the ruling was announced.

A Leucadia man, Scott Chatfield, is leading a drive for reconsideration through the Web site www.keep760.org. His online petition proposes that current 760 customers retain that area code and that new phone owners be assigned 442 once the available supply of phone numbers is exhausted.

While that would eliminate the need for businesses to reprint ads or business cards and individuals to update address books, it might also require dialing an area code for every call we make, punching in 10 numbers instead of seven.

No longer would we have any geographic sense of where we're calling based on the area code. You could have a 760 number and a next-door neighbor with 442. A phone number beginning with 745 might as easily be in Oceanside as its current Escondido locale.

A solution isn't easy. It's too late for people to toss out their cell phones and fax machines to free up more numbers. And no matter which part of the current 760 gets a new area code, some will be upset.

So much for happily ever after.

Contact staff columnist Jeff Frank at (760) 740-5419 or jfrank@nctimes.com.

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