Arkansas News Bureau

LITTLE ROCK — The state Public Service Commission approved a plan today to begin assigning a second area code in Arkansas 870 area, possibly beginning in 2011.

The plan will require 10-digit dialing in the region, which covers southern, eastern and part of northern Arkansas.

New telephone customers could receive a number with the 870 area code or the new yet-to-be-determined number, state PSC Executive Director John Bethel said.

“There’s a finite number of telephone numbers,” Bethel said. “It’s not unlike what happened when the 501 area code started to fill up.”

For decades, 501 was the state’s only area code before 870 and 479 were added.

The PSC expects telephone numbers in the 870 area code to run out in the fourth quarter of 2011, though the time frame is not definite.