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811 centers report GIS upgrades, address‑point layers and auto 'no‑response' enforcement measures
Summary
Representatives from USA North and Dig Alert told the board they are adding address points, parcel and mile‑marker layers, API links to county GIS, and auto‑no‑response features to improve ticket accuracy and reduce missed notifications. Staff said these investments aim to reduce over‑notification and improve locator success.
Representatives of the two regional notification centers serving California presented an operational update on Nov. 18. USA North (northern regional center) and Dig Alert (southern regional center) described recent technical work meant to improve ticket quality and timeliness.
The centers reported the following operational items and near‑term plans: automated 'no‑response' handling (which initially inflated reported no‑response counts but has forced members to correct contact data), new GIS base‑map layers (address points, parcels, railroad and aqueduct mile markers), API integrations to pull updated county GIS data on a daily or near‑daily basis where available, expanded support for KML/KMZ uploads, and increased redundancy in call‑center hardware and staffing. Dig Alert also added a member‑area viewer so investigators and operators can compare overlapping notification areas and reduce coverage gaps.
Center staff said the mapping enhancements are intended to let excavators draw smaller, more precise dig polygons so the right operators get tickets and locators can find work sites faster. USA North noted that its ticket volumes peak in October; Dig Alert noted the same seasonal pattern. Both centers acknowledged that the ‘auto no‑response’ feature introduced in January required outreach to members because it produced a high count of system‑generated no‑responses; staff said those numbers have declined as member contact data was corrected and education efforts continued.
Board members asked about how call center staff handle contested no‑response or ‘marked vs not marked’ disputes; both centers said agents review prior revisions and member responses and, where feasible, will forward evidence and history to help resolve conflicts. Staff also emphasized that ticketing remains an imperfect human and technical process and that continued investment in GIS data (address points, parcel and preliminary parcel layers, and mile markers) is needed to reduce errors.
What this means: the centers are investing in more frequent data updates and new map layers to reduce unnecessary over‑notification while improving the accuracy of notification targeting, which board members said should help reduce the number of incidents that lead to enforcement hearings. The board asked staff to continue monitoring metrics such as EPR timing, late‑response distribution, and the effectiveness of mapping layers in reducing damages.
