830 THE BELL SYSTEM TECHNICAL JOURNAL, SEPTEMBER 1952 



measured entirely by the increased speed and improved accuracy of 

 coiuiections. An important factor is the continued abihty of the tele- 

 phone system to meet the rapidly increasing demand for telephone 

 service without making excessive demands on the available supply of 

 labor. The development of local dial operation was absolutely necessary 

 to handle the great growth of local telephoning which has taken place. 

 Today, in many places, requirements for people for toll operations are 

 very heavy and an increased amount of automatic toll switching is 

 becoming more and more necessary to make possible handling the 

 rapidly increasing number of long distance telephone messages. 



With this development there has been a marked increase of employ- 

 ment. The Bell Companies today employ 244,000 operators compared 

 with 131,000 in 1941. They have also employed many people to build 

 and install about 300-million dollars worth of toll dialing ecjuipment, 

 to constinict places to house it, maintain it and carry out operating 

 rearrangements. 



With respect to the future, even with the nationwide automatic switch- 

 ing plan in full operation and the local central offices arranged to permit 

 customer dialing, there will still be a large amount of work for operators. 

 They will be required to handle information and assistance traffic, 

 person-to-person calls, collect calls and other classes of calls which do 

 not lend themselves to customer handling, as well as any individual 

 calls which the customers may not wish to dial themselves. 



The Bell Companies have necessarily taken the lead in planning and 

 applying these new developments. The plans, however, are all laid in 

 such a way as to include telephone users in Independent Telephone 

 Company offices. The Independent Companies are being kept fully in- 

 formed of these plans as they develop and are participating, as the 

 development of their own plant makes it practicable and desirable, in 

 extending the benefits of the new forms of operation to their own 

 customers. 



This long-term development has required the very close cooperation 

 of all parts of the Bell System - American Telephone and Telegraph 

 Company General Department, Bell Telephone Laboratories, Western 

 Electric Company, Long Lines and all of the Bell Operating Companies. 

 Each installation of equipment and circuits and each operation is a 

 part of a nationwide system and must be closely coordinated. The close 

 interrelation and working together of the various parts of the Bell Tele- 

 phone System, research and development, manufacturing, engineering 

 and operating are necessary for the effective planning and execution of 

 this tremendous project. 



