Massachusetts is running out of telephone number prefixes in the region served by the 508 and 617 area codes. This is a result of tremendous technology demands: new lines and second lines for fax machines, numbers for pagers, cellular telephone numbers, voice mail, and computer modems.

To alleviate the problem, Massachusetts has added two new area codes, 978 and 781. As a result, 10-digit dialing will be necessary for local phone calls in select areas.

EFFECTIVE DATES: The use of the new 978 and 781 area codes began Sept. 1, 1997. A four-month grace period ended Jan. 1, 1998, during which callers could complete calls by either dialing the new area codes or the old 508/617 area codes. Mandatory use of the 978 and 781 codes began Jan. 1.

Services that will not change include:

¥ Local calling area rates will not change even if you are dialing 10 digits in place of 7.

¥ Rates for local or long-distance calls are not affected by this area code change.

¥ There are no changes for 911 emergency calls or calls to 500, 700, 800, 888, 900, and 950 numbers.

¥ Directory assistance will not change.

¥ Calls beyond the local area will still require 1+ the ten-digit number.

Services that will change:

Placing local calls between area codes will require ten- or eleven-digit dialing. For example, if your new area code is 781, and you place a local call to 617, you would need to dial 617-XXX-XXXX.

PLEASE NOTE: Local calling area rates do not change. If your call was a local call before this split, it will remain a local call and be charged as a local call whether or not 10- or 11-digit dialing is necessary.

Below is a list of towns and their area codes. The dialing instructions reflect calls made from Cambridge to the location:

SWITCHING FROM 617 TO 781 WITH 10- or 11-DIGIT DIALING: (STILL A LOCAL CALL, XXX-XXX-XXXX, or 1-XXX-XXX-XXXX)

Arlington, Bedford, Braintree, Burlington, Canton, Dedham, Hingham, Holbrook, Hull, Lexington, Lincoln, Lynn, Malden, Medford, Melrose, Needham, Norwood, Randolph, Reading, Revere, Saugus, Stoneham, Wakefield, Waltham, Wellesley, Weymouth, Winchester, Woburn

SWITCHING FROM 617 TO 781 WITH 11-DIGIT DIALING: (STILL A TOLL CALL, 1-XXX-XXX-XXXX)

Abington, Cohasset, Duxbury, Halifax, Hanover, Hanson, Kingston, Lynnfield, Marblehead, Marshfield, Nahant, Norwell, Pembroke, Plympton, Rockland, Scituate, Sharon, Stoughton, Swampscott, Weston, Westwood, Whitman,

SWITCHING FROM 508 TO 978 WITH 11-DIGIT DIALING: (STILL A TOLL CALL, 1-XXX-XXX-XXXX)

Acton, Amesbury, Andover, Ashburnham, Ashby, Athol, Ayer, Barre, Berlin, Beverly, Billerica, Bolton, Boxborough, Boxford, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Clinton, Concord, Danvers, Dracut, Dunstable, Essex, Fitchburg, Gardner, Georgetown, Gloucester, Groton, Groveland, Hamilton, Harvard, Haverhill, Hubbardston, Hudson, Ipswich, Lancaster, Lawrence, Leominster, Littleton, Lowell, Lunenburg, Manchester, Maynard, Merrimac, Methuen, Middleton, Newbury, Newburyport, New Salem, N. Andover, N. Reading, Orange, Peabody, Pepperell, Petersham, Phillipston, Princeton, Rockport, Rowley, Royalston, Salem, Salisbury, Shirley, Sterling, Stow, Sudbury, Templeton, Tewksbury, Topsfield

THE 617 AREA CODE WILL BE KEPT BY: (only 7-digit dialing)

Belmont, Brookline, Chelsea, Newton, Quincy, Boston, Cambridge, Everett, Milton, Somerville, Watertown, Winthrop

**Boston exchanges include: Roxbury, South Boston, Charlestown, Jamaica Plain, Hyde Park, Brighton, East Boston, Dorchester

THE AREA CODE 508 WILL BE KEPT BY: (11-digit, 1+508-xxx-xxxx is still required)

Acushnet, Ashland, Attleboro, Auburn, Avon, Barnstable, Bellingham, Berkley, Blackstone, Bourne, Boylston, Brewster, Bridgewater, Brockton, Brookfield, Carver, Charlton, Chatham, Chilmark, Dartmouth, Dennis, Dighton, Douglas, Dover, Dudley, E. Bridgewater, E. Brookfld, Eastham, Easton, Edgartown, Fairhaven, Fall River, Falmouth, Foxboro, Framingham, Franklin, Freetown, Gay Head, Gosnold, Grafton, Harwich, Holden, Holliston, Hopedale, Hopkinton, Lakeville, Leicester, Mansfield, Marion, Marlborough, Mashpee, Mattapoisett, Medfield, Medway, Mendon, Middlborough, Milbury, Milford, Millis, Millville, Nantucket, Natick, New Bedford, New Braintree, Norfolk, N. Attleboro, N. Brookfld, Northborough, Northbridge, Norton, Oak Bluffs, Oakham, Orleans, Oxford, Paxton, Plainville, Plymouth, Provincetown, Raynham, Rehoboth, Rochester, Rutland, Sandwich, Seekonk, Sherborn, Shrewsbury, Southborough, Southbridge, Somerset, Spencer, Sturbridge, Sutton, Swansea, Taunton, Tisbury, Truro, Upton, Uxbridge, Walpole, Wareham, Webster, Wellfleet, W. Boylston, W. Bridgewater, W. Brookfield, W. Tisbury, Westborough, Westport, Worcester, Wrentham, Yarmouth

For more detailed information, please access www.Bell-Atl.com/about/search.htm.