Beginning October 1, 2026, Tennessee 811 will reduce the standard Notification Buffer applied to locate requests from approximately 343 feet to 200 feet. This change is intended to reduce unnecessary utility notifications while helping members focus resources on locate requests that are more likely to involve their underground facilities.
When an excavator calls in a locate request or submits a ticket online, the proposed excavation area is mapped using a point, line, or polygon based on the site description and marking instructions provided during ticket creation. That mapped excavation area serves as the basis for determining which utilities are notified about the planned work.
Tennessee 811 then automatically applies a Notification Buffer that extends beyond the mapped excavation area. The buffer is an added precaution applied to all tickets to help account for mapping discrepancies or measurement errors. If a member’s mapped service area intersects the Notification Buffer, that member may receive a ticket notification.
The current 343-foot Notification Buffer may result in notifications to utilities whose mapped service areas intersect the larger buffer, even when their underground facilities are not close enough to the actual proposed excavation area to be in conflict. By reducing the buffer to 200 feet, Tennessee 811 is working to make notifications more targeted and reduce over-notification of members.
It is important to note that the Notification Buffer is not the same as the State of Tennessee Tolerance Zone. The Tolerance Zone is a 24-inch zone on either side of a marked underground facility where excavators are required to use reasonable care during excavation to avoid damage. The Notification Buffer is used in the ticket notification process; it does not change excavation requirements near marked underground facilities.
For members, the reduction may provide several operational benefits. Members may receive fewer notifications for excavation activity farther from their mapped service areas, reducing unnecessary ticket review and unnecessary “Clear - No Conflict” or “No Marking Needed” responses. In situations where unnecessary notifications require a locator response, fewer notifications may also result in cost savings for a member utility.
Reducing unnecessary ticket notifications may help members respond more efficiently to locate requests within their service area and focus attention on tickets that have a greater likelihood of affecting member underground facilities.
Excavators may also benefit from a more focused notification process. If fewer utilities, on average, are notified on a locate request, an excavator has fewer utility responses to account for. Efficient utility responses to underground locate requests improve safety, may reduce project delays, and help make the overall 811 process more reliable.
The Notification Buffer should also not be confused with a member’s mapped Service Area. A reduction in the Tennessee 811 Notification Buffer does not reduce or change a member’s existing service area in Tennessee 811’s database. These are separate geographic areas.
The Notification Buffer is automatically applied by Tennessee 811’s system around the mapped excavation area on a ticket. A Member Service Area is the geographic area established for the member, by the member, and used to determine when that member is notified on a locate request.
A member concerned that the reduced Notification Buffer could negatively affect its ticket notifications should review its existing service area with Tennessee 811 and explore whether that area should be adjusted or expanded.
Members who want to review their current service area can begin by visiting the Service Area Editor (SAE) page: https://www.tenn811.com/sae
Members without an account can request one through the same page. Tennessee 811’s GIS team can also assist members with evaluating their current mapped service area.
For more information about the Notification Buffer reduction, visit:
https://www.tenn811.com/notification-buffer