Guidance on Prioritizing Locate Requests

Guidance on Prioritizing Locate Requests

In order to assist members who may have reduced service levels during this challenging time, Ontario One Call is providing the following guidance on prioritizing locate requests. 

The following priority list is developed with consideration to members’ legal obligations and the instructions provided by the provincial government on essential services.

To find out more about the provincial government essential services list click here

1. Emergencies dispatched by Ontario One Call, which must be completed within two hours.
2. Any activity directly related to the health care response to the pandemic, including new facilities, expansions, renovations and conversion of spaces that could be utilized for health care purposes.
3. Activities related to maintaining or restoring essential utilities, including water, telecommunications, natural gas and electricity. This would include Priority Zero requests where a business or residence is without one of those services and needs to be restored promptly, in particular during a time when people are being asked to remain at home.
4. Environmental Spill & Clean Up.
5. Construction projects related to transit, transportation, utility, energy and justice projects, beyond day to day maintenance.
6. Construction work in the industrial, commercial, institutional or residential sector.
7. Landscaping activities. 
8. Homeowner requests.

To help relieve pressure, we are asking Excavators to cancel requests in our system, if your work is non-essential and/or if you are not planning to dig in the immediate future, additionally please do not submit any future requests that do not meet these criteria.

If you have any questions or need additional support, please email
Compliance@OntarioOneCall.ca