New 730 Area Code Goes Live This Week

(Undated) — A new area code for Illinois goes into effect this week. The Illinois Commerce Commission approved the new 730 area code last week. It will serve the area already using the 618 area code. The area code for current telephone numbers will not change nor will the price of calls. However, customers getting a phone line in the 618 regions could get assigned a number with the new 730 area code starting Friday. The 618 area code covers all or parts of thirty-seven counties in Illinois, including Crawford. 618 is one of the original, eighty-six area codes in the United States, assigned by Bell Laboratories in 1947.