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Regional call centers push 'member select' and auto no-response to reduce ticket noise
Summary
Dig Alert and USA North presented ticket-continuity updates including a 'member select' feature that lets excavators limit follow-up notifications and an automated no-response reminder to encourage timely EPRs; presenters and board members discussed possible operational impacts and misuse of manual no-response reports.
Representatives from the Ticket Continuity Committee and regional notification centers told the California Underground Safety Board on April 13 that recent system changes aim to reduce unnecessary ticket noise while improving EPR compliance.
James Wingate of USA North described the member select concept: for follow-up actions (renewal, remark), an excavator can choose which utility operators receive the revision ticket so only relevant operators are sent secondary notifications. Wingate said the system will still default to notifying all operators for new tickets but that member select reduces redundant delivery for certain secondary actions.
Presenters also reviewed the auto no-response feature that sends an automated reminder at the legal start date and then again every two working days until an operator posts an EPR or the ticket expires. Dig Alert implemented an auto no-response earlier; USA North rolled out similar functionality later. Committee members said the auto reminder improves awareness and EPR compliance but discussed implementation differences between centers and vendor timelines for full feature parity.
Board members and locators raised concerns about manual no-response misuse. One board member noted that when a utility posts a closing code ("no access" or similar), contractors sometimes still file manual no-response reports that convert tickets to emergency response status, creating operational burdens for locators. Presenters suggested the ticket-process committee continue work on clarifying return-trip, no-response, and EPR definitions to reduce disputes.
Staff and center representatives said technology updates (vendor builds) will be needed to make some behaviors identical between centers; timelines for feature completion vary by vendor and region. The ticket-continuity committee recommended continued outreach and training for excavators and operators to reduce disputes over EPR coding and to preserve excavator rights to report problems in the field.
The board directed the ticket-process committee to continue refining definitions and to consider safeguards that reduce improper escalation while preserving legitimate excavator dispute mechanisms.
