purposes were replaced in the 1970s and 1980s by Traffic Service Position System (TSPS) and similar systems, which greatly reduced operator involvement in calls. The customer would, instead of simply dialing "0" for the operator, dial 0+NPA+7digits, after which an operator would answer and provide the desired service (coin collection, obtaining acceptance on a collect call, etc.), and then release the call to be automatically handled by the TSPS.

Before the late 1970s and early