Long Distance Dialing Begins 8/19/1962 in El Paso

LD Dialing To Begin Here Aug. 19 (1962)
EL PASO HERALD-POST. Monday, June 25, 1962—
'New Equipment Being Installed To Handle Calls

D i r e c t distance dialing, which enables a telephone user to dial his own long distance calls, will arrive in El Paso at 12:01 a. m. Sunday, Aug. 19.

Equipment to provide the new telephone service is almost completely installed at the main buildings of Mountain States Telephone Co. at 510 Texas street, and testing has begun. ISS his own station-to-station long distance call. To place a call a customer dials "1," the access code in El Paso, to enter the direct distance dialing equipment.
He then dials the area code of the section of the country he is calling. For example, El Paso's area code is 915. After dialing these numbers he then dials the number of the station he is calling. Calling The El Paso Herald-Post from out-of-town would require dialing the access code to the equipment, then 915-532-1662. Person-to-person calls will still have to be made by the operator under the direct distance dialing system. However, use of the area code and knowledge of the person's number will greatly speed this operation.

Among preparations for direct distance dialing has been the shifting to new telephone numbers. The shift, to be gradual over the next few years, eliminates
letters and uses seven numbers. The reason for all-number calling number calling
is to facilitate the new kinds of telephone service and because the number of usable prefixes is rapidly being diminished. EI Faso's entrance into direct distance dialing has required a multi-million dollar expansion program...