Come next April, you’ll start seeing a new area code for Alberta.
Along with 403, 587, 780 and 825, new phone numbers will begin with 368.
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) said it’s intended to meet the continuously growing demand for new digits.
“The introduction of a new area code creates millions of additional telephone numbers without affecting the existing numbers,” said Kelly T. Walsh, program manager of the Canadian Numbering Administrator.
The new area code will be introduced gradually across the province starting on April 23, 2022.
Numbers with the new 368 area code will only be assigned to customers once there is no longer a sufficient supply of numbers with the existing area codes.
The very first area code – 403 — was introduced in Alberta in 1947.
In 1999, 780 was brought in to cover Edmonton and northern Alberta.
And, as cellphone demand grew, the area code 587 was added in 2008 and 825 was introduced in 2016.