When you call in a locate request, our Locate Request Agent draws a point, line, or polygon on the map to represent the area where you’ll be excavating. To make sure they map the right area, the agent will ask you for the nearest intersecting street and the approximate distance from that intersection to your job site. When we’re dealing with an address, the locator will typically use their GPS to navigate to the location, so the distance and direction is not typically used for getting the locator to the site – it’s making sure they ever get that ticket in the first place. The area mapped by our agent determines which utilities are notified, so it is always important to be as accurate as possible. The best practice is to have an idea of the distance and direction from the nearest intersection for every locate request, even if you’re digging at a specific address.

In the case of a point address, we may be able to simply confirm what our maps show instead of asking you to provide distance and direction. Currently we have point addressing (E911 addresses) in 63 of the 95 counties in Tennessee. Point addressing provides a precise point for an address location which is then manually adjusted by our GIS team where needed, allowing the highest level of accuracy. If the address you give for your work location matches a point address on the map, we will still need the closest intersecting street for verification, but we won’t need to ask you for the distance. However, if the address you give shows more than a half mile from the intersection or doesn’t match a point address, then we have to have the approximate distance from that intersection to make sure the correct area is drawn.

Maps are never 100% accurate, and not all maps are equal, so distance and direction is a tool to ensure the accuracy of your locate request. We want one ticket to get the job done for you, so help us be thorough the first time around.