If you live in the 310 area code, the odds are about even that you will have a new code by sometime in early 1997.

Instead, the PUC decided to split the existing code: Half will retain 310, the other half will get a brand-new code-562. The split will be geographical, but where the dividing line will be drawn is yet to be determined, according to PUC spokeswoman Kyle Devine.

They said an overlay would have forced customers of smaller companies, like MCI, to use a 10-digit number to make calls within the 310 area, while PacBell and GTE customers would have continued to use seven-digit local numbers. MCI, Sprint and others favored the split, but PacBell and GTE opposed it.