Southwestern Bell's Local Plus calling plan could be in effect late this year if it gets approval of the Missouri Public Service Commission.
Local Plus is an optional, outbound local-calling package that would provide subscribers unlimited calls to all customers within a regional calling area for a flat rate.
That calling area for Cape Girardeau residents would include St. Louis and north to New London, west to Versailles, Camdenton and Fort Leonard Wood, and south to the Arkansas line in Eastern Missouri.
Southwestern Bell filed its latest economical-calling option with the PSC this month.
Under the new plan, Southwestern Bell customers can sign up for what is called the Lata-wide Extended Area Service under the simple name of Local Plus.
The proposal is in response to the many customers who have indicated they want larger calling areas, said Priscilla Hill-Ardoin, president of Southwestern Bell Missouri.
The PSC is expected to announce its decision on the request by mid-March.
Hill-Ardoin said the new calling area would consist of most of the former 314 area code except the Jefferson City and Columbia areas.
Local Plus would be priced at $30 a month for residential lines and $60 a month for business lines.
Local Plus would require some network enhancements, which would be completed under an implementation schedule that would be filed after PSC approval.
The implementation process could take from six to nine months to complete.
"Southwestern Bell is eager to offer this service to our customers," said Hill-Ardoin.
Connect with the Southeast Missourian Newsroom:
For corrections to this story or other insights for the editor, click here. To submit a letter to the editor, click here. To learn about the Southeast Missourian’s AI Policy, click here.