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LATA – Local Access and Transport Area

Webopedia Staff
Last Updated May 24, 2021 7:47 am

Local Access and Transport Area (LATA) is a U.S. term that refers to a geographic region assigned to one or more telephone companies for providing communication services.

A connection between two telephone companies within the same region is referred to as intraLATA. A connection between two local exchange carriers in different regions is called interLATA, which is the same as long-distance service.

Provisions guiding the use of LATAs are outlined in the Telecommunications Act of 1996.