The Way You Make Local Shreveport Calls Has Changed

If you live in the 318 area code, you might want to spend a little time today updating all the contacts in your cell phone since the way to make a local Shreveport call has changed.

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Not long ago all of North Louisiana and the majority of Central Louisiana was informed that we would be getting an additional area code to remedy a deficit problem with the current 318 area code.

In a story from the Louisiana Radio Network, Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell explains the predicament:

“We have run out of numbers for people to use, and so we had to get some extra numbers"

So, to provide a whole new slate of phone numbers, our area is getting an additional area code which is 457.

This means that effective yesterday, in order to make a call anywhere in north or central Louisiana, even if it's a simple, local call, we are required to dial a full 10 digits, which will include the area code.

According to Campbell, we've got six months to adjust to the new dialing rules before the mandatory deadline of August 25th.

Campbell explains that adjusting to the 10-digit dialing, which will be required of all current 318 customers and those receiving the new 457 code, shouldn't be terribly hard, “If you’re going to do it when you text people, it shouldn’t be that big of a deal.  It’s going to be a little problem to get used to it, but we’ll get used to it.”