First, and most important, it meets public requirements because it is a brief, easily remembered number that can be dialed quickly. Second, it is a unique number, having never been authorized as an office code, area code, or service code. Blue Springs served as a pilot project for Southwestern Bell Telephone Company. In some agencies, incoming calls are placed in que and can be interfaced with a computer aided dispatching system. We all do.
Customers pay the surcharge when they pay their monthly phone bills.
The surcharge has been in place for most of the region since 1983. State law requires counties to review the surcharge rate each year. The name, phone number and address information which displays on the CRT screens can be a tremendous asset to call takers. With good addressing, it is possible to dispatch emergency vehicles to an accident without the caller even speaking, if necessary. The responsibility of determining the proper response agencies also lies with the answering agency.