Phone users in the 805 area code will have to dial 10 digits for all calls — even local ones — starting Saturday.
Cellphone users will have to dial the area code and phone number for calls to and from the 805 area code and the new 820 area code, according to the California Public Utilities Commission.
Landline users making calls to or from the 805 area code area will have to dial “1” plus the three-digit area code, then the phone number.
The change is a result of an overlay of two area codes approved by the PUC last year. The new 820 area code is being added to the geographic region served by the 805 to meet the demand for available telephone numbers, according to the CPUC.
The 805 and 820 area code area includes San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, and small portions of Monterey and Kern counties.
Existing 805 customers will keep their current area code and existing phone number.
Beginning June 30, new telephone lines or services may be assigned an 820 area code, depending on the telephone number inventory. The 820 area code callers must enter the area code, then the phone number on all calls, or the call won’t be completed.
According to Verizon Wireless, consumers will still be able to dial three digits to reach 911, 211, 311, 411, 511, 611, 711, and 811, despite the new area code overlay.
The CPUC decision to adopt an area code overlay included public meetings in the cities of Oxnard, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo.
It’s not the first area code change in the region.
The 805 area code was created in 1957, splitting from the 213 area code and covering the coastal and inland areas north of Los Angeles.
The 805 was reduced to its current configuration along the coast when the 661 area code was split in 1999.
— Noozhawk staff writer Brooke Holland can be reached at bholland@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.