Western Washington to get new 564 area code starting next year

OLYMPIA, Wash. -- Coming soon: The end of not having to worry about the area code when dialing a local number in Western Washington.

Our state will be getting a new 564 area code starting in the fall of 2017, the Utilities and Transportation Commission decided Thursday. The area code will overlay the existing 206, 360, 425, and 253 area codes already in place in certain geographic areas as phone numbers in those area codes get exhausted.

The move won't affect any current phone numbers, but anyone in Western Washington getting a new phone number, be it Seattle, Everett or Ocean Shores, may get the 564 area code when their current area code runs out. The UTC says the 509 area code in Eastern Washington will remain unchanged.

The move will also require callers to dial all 10 digits of a phone number with the 1-(area code) in front, even if you're calling next door.

The announcement was prompted by new projections showing the 360 area code was likely to run out of available numbers in 2018. The 564 area code will come first to those in the current 360 zone next fall, the UTC said.

The commission originally approved the single area code overlay for western Washington in 2000, but postponed it after successful state and national number conservation efforts.