Local Calling Expanded in Hamilton
(Fall 2007)
As of November 8, 2007, the City of Hamilton’s local calling area (LCA) will be expanded to enable all telephone subscribers in affected exchanges to call all other exchanges that are located substantially within the City of Hamilton boundary without incurring long distance charges.
Important Note:
If you're affected by the expansion of the City of Hamilton’s LCA, be sure to re-program your communications equipment for local calling by removing the “1” from programmed numbers that used to be long distance. This is especially important for security and alarm systems. It may also be required for speed dialing, fax machines and automatic diallers.
Background
- Why did Hamilton want to expand its local calling area?
Following amalgamation in 2001, there was recognition that residents in the City of Hamilton should be able to call one another, as well as Hamilton businesses, without incurring long distance charges.
- What process did we follow?
Following amalgamation, a task force was set up to review long distance calling patterns within Hamilton and recommend changes. The task force recommended to Council that a request be made to expand local calling to all exchanges located substantially within the City of Hamilton boundary to ensure that most residents and businesses in Hamilton could call one another without incurring long distance charges. The process was followed as set out by the CRTC (Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission).
- Who approved these changes?
The CRTC granted interim approval for the expansion of Hamilton’s LCA on May 14, 2007.
Timing
- When does the change take place?
The expanded LCA takes effect on November 8, 2007.
Who is affected?
- I live in Hamilton, but my telephone exchange does not benefit. Why?
Local calling was expanded to include the following exchanges that are located substantially within the City of Hamilton boundary: Ancaster, Binbrook, Dundas, Freelton, Galt, Hamilton, Lynden, Mount Hope, Stoney Creek, Waterdown, and Winona. [See Figure 1, Table 1, and Table 2 for additional details.]
Local calling was not extended to the Caledonia, Guelph and St. George exchanges which are located almost entirely outside the Hamilton city limits.
6. If I live outside Hamilton, will I be impacted? Why and how?
If you live outside Hamilton, your calling area will not be affected unless you have a telephone line in one of the exchanges to which local calling was extended (see areas affected by the expanded LCA in the answer to question 5 above). If you do have a telephone line in one of these affected exchanges, then you will also benefit from the expansion of local calling and pay the surcharge for the three-year period.
- Why were the telephone exchanges in the City of Burlington not included in this change?
The purpose of this LCA expansion was to enable the majority of citizens and businesses in the amalgamated City of Hamilton to be able to call one another without incurring long distance charges. Accordingly, only those exchanges located substantially within the City of Hamilton boundary were included in this initiative.
How does the expanded LCA impact me?
- Do I need to make any changes?
If you're affected by the expanded LCA, be sure to re-program your communications equipment for local calling on November 8th by removing the “1” from programmed numbers that used to be long distance. This is especially important for security and alarm systems. It may also be required for speed dialing, fax machines and automatic diallers.
- Where can I call now without long distance charges? What has changed?
Hamilton’s local calling area is now bigger. See Table 2 for details regarding current and expanded local calling capabilities.
- What about the areas I used to call free as local calls? Is there any change to those?
All areas to which you could place local calls before the expanded LCA remain unchanged.
- Will my phone number or area code change as a result of the expanded LCA?
Phone numbers and area codes will not change as a result of the expanded local calling area.
- My phone number is in area code 519. How do I place local calls to phone numbers in area code 905?
Just dial the 905 area code and the seven-digit phone number after November 8, 2007 to place your local call.
Cost
- What is the cost for this?
There will be an additional cost on Bell subscriber phone bills of $0.30 per month for each residential line and $0.17 per month for each business line. These surcharges are intended to temporarily compensate all participating long distance service providers offering service in the expanded LCA for revenues they will no longer receive once calls are local. Bell is responsible for billing and collecting the surcharges on behalf of all participating long distance service providers and distributing a portion to each.
- How long do I have to pay the surcharge?
The surcharge will appear on the phone bills of affected Bell customers for three years (for total amounts of $10.80 for residential subscribers and $6.12 for business subscribers over three years).
- What happens with people who move into the area part way through the three-year surcharge timeframe?
They will pay the surcharge for the number of months remaining in the three-year timeframe (i.e., from implementation in November, 2007).
- Why is the surcharge for business lines different than the surcharge for residential lines?
The surcharges are different because they are based on the reduced long distance revenues for all participating providers of long distance service from residential and business lines, respectively, as a result of this change.
Additional information
- Where is additional information available about expanded LCAs?
Additional information can be found on the Bell Canada website at www.bell.ca/elca.