Suffolk County's New Area Code Announced

934.

That will be Suffolk County’s second area code come 2016, the New York State Public Service Commission announced Friday.

The new area code was assigned by the North American Numbering Plan Administration (NANPA) and will provide additional much-needed phone numbers for residents and businesses in the county, officials said.

Local telephone companies have been directed to activate the new 934 area code before the end of the third quarter of 2016.

Earlier this year, the NANPA informed the PSC that the remaining available central office codes in the 631 area code (Suffolk County) would all be assigned by the third quarter of 2016.

To provide area code relief as required by federal law, the PSC examined “overlay” and “geographic split” options.

The PSC decided an overlay would be the better option because it is easier to implement from a technical standpoint and less expensive from a customer standpoint, especially for business customers who could be forced to change signage and branding in the event of a geographic split.

An overlay is when a new area code is superimposed on an existing calling area, and results in more than one area code serving the same calling area or region.

Under an overlay plan, existing telephone numbers remain unchanged, and all new telephone numbers will be assigned the new 934 area code.

With an overlay, even calls to a number in the same area code would not be completed without first dialing the 3-digit area code, and then the 7-digit number (10-digit dialing).

In New York State, the number of area codes will have increased from the original five to 16 with the addition of 934.

Photo: Google Maps

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