Area codes 203 and 475

{{short description|Area codes for southwestern Connecticut}} {{Use American English|date=February 2026}} {{Use mdy dates|date=November 2018}} thumb|300px|Municipal map of Connecticut with numbering plan area 203/475 highlighted (red). '''Area codes 203 and 475''' are telephone area codes in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The numbering plan area (NPA) is mostly coextensive with the Connecticut portion of the New York metropolitan area, and comprises most of Fairfield County, all of New Haven County, and a small portion of Litchfield County.

==History== When the American Telephone and Telegraph Company (AT&T) established the first nationwide telephone numbering plan in 1947, Connecticut was designated as a single numbering plan area (NPA), with area code 203, one of the 86 original North American area codes.

On August 28, 1995, the state was divided into two NPAs, reducing the area of 203 to today's extent and adding area code 860 for the remainder of the state. Area code 860 was eventually overlaid with 959,<ref>{{cite news |last=Muñoz |first=Hilda |date=March 3, 2014 |title=New 959 Area Code Coming To Connecticut |url=http://www.courant.com/community/new-britain/hc-new-area-code-0304-20140303,0,4612687.story |newspaper=Hartford Courant |location=Hartford, Connecticut |publisher=Tribune Company |access-date=March 4, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140304181020/http://www.courant.com/community/new-britain/hc-new-area-code-0304-20140303,0,4612687.story |archive-date=March 4, 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref> and NPA 203 received a second area code when 475 was added on December 12, 2009.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20010707040757/http://www.areacode-info.com/headline/1999/ct990818.htm ''Regulators Have Area Code Plan''] Hartford Courant, August 1999</ref> This overlay was first proposed by the Connecticut Department of Public Utility Control in August 1999.

Even though area code 475 overlays only 203, all callers in Connecticut (including those in area code 860) had to dial all calls with ten digits, effective November 14, 2009;<ref>''[https://www.nationalnanpa.com/pdf/PL_388.pdf Planning Letter 388]'' NANPA, April 14, 2009</ref> this was in preparation for the overlay of area code 959 on area code 860 that was implemented in 2014.

The first range of telephone numbers made available in Connecticut's third area code was (475) 882-4xxx, in the Huntington section of Shelton.{{citation needed|date=May 2022}}

==Service area== The counties included in the numbering plan area are:<ref name="phones.whitepages">{{Cite web |url=http://phones.whitepages.com/203?page=1 |title=203 Area Code | WhitePages |access-date=June 2, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716180944/http://phones.whitepages.com/203?page=1 |archive-date=July 16, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> :Fairfield (except the Town of Sherman), New Haven, and Litchfield (the towns of Woodbury, Bethlehem, and a small part of Roxbury).

This serves the following cities and towns:<ref name="phones.whitepages" /> :Ansonia, Beacon Falls, Bethany, Bethel, Bethlehem, Branford, Bridgeport, Brookfield, Cheshire, Danbury, Darien, Derby, East Haven, Easton, Fairfield, Greenwich, Guilford, Hamden, Madison, Meriden, Middlebury, Milford, Monroe, Naugatuck, New Canaan, New Fairfield, New Haven, Newtown, North Branford, North Haven, Norwalk, Orange, Oxford, Prospect, Redding, Ridgefield, a small part of Roxbury, Seymour, Shelton, Southbury, Stamford, Stratford, Trumbull, Wallingford, Waterbury, West Haven, Weston, Westport, Wilton, Wolcott, Woodbridge, Woodbury

The city of Meriden is notable as the only place in Connecticut from where one can call towns in either the Hartford or New Haven exchanges toll-free from a landline telephone.{{citation needed|date=May 2022}}

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== {{Area_code_footer|Map=CT}} *[https://www.ct.gov/dpuc/ Connecticut Department of Public Utility Control]

{{Area code box|State=CT | This=203/475 | N=860/959 | S=516/363, 631/934 | E=860/959 | W=914, 845/329 | S1=NY}}

Category:Telecommunications-related introductions in 1947 Category:Telecommunications-related introductions in 2009 203 203 Category:Fairfield County, Connecticut Category:New Haven County, Connecticut Category:Litchfield County, Connecticut