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The Public Service Commission of West Virginia has implemented a new telephone area code along a geographic split at the Charleston-Clarksburg LATA to solve the exhaustion of the 304 area code by the end of 2008.
According to a map, it appears that Calhoun, Roane, Wirt, Clay and Ritchie will remain in the 304 area, and Gilmer County will have a new area code.
There will not be an immediate change in consumer dialing practices. The area code decision will take at least one year to put into effect.
During that one-year period, there will be a public education program which will provide consumers further information, including the new area code number.
Benefits of the geographic split to West Virginia customers are that each area code remains defined by a geographic area: 304 will apply to the south-western half of the state, while the new area code will apply to the northern and eastern portions of the state.
That will make it easier for callers to recognize the general geographic location of a telephone number.
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