Final ring for number of payphones

Britishtelecom and North Lanarkshire Council have formally began consulting the public on plans to remove 13 public payphones from the area.

The prevalence of mobile phones, and constantly improving network coverage, means that payphones are rarely used.

Rather than continue with the expense of repairing and maintaining payphones, which now have little or no community benefit, BT intends to remove phones which are identified as unnecessary.

Phones, which are in suicide or accident blackspots, in areas without mobile phone coverage or within 400 metres of the coast will be retained as they are deemed to be fulfilling a social need.

Similarly there are no plans to remove payphones, which are the only ones within 800 metres, have been used at least 12 times in a year, and at least 500 households live within a one kilometre radius.

The phones targeted for removal include one at the junction of Main Street and Sandyhill Avenue in Shotts, those in Hope Street andthrashbush Road inwishaw, and phones based in Dornoch Road andwoodilee Road in, Motherwell.

A BT spokeswoman said:“most people now have a mobile phone and calls made from our public telephones have fallen by around 90 per cent in the past decade.

“We consider a number of factors before consulting on the removal of payphones, including whether others are available nearby and usage. In North Lanarkshire, we have made 13 applications to remove payphones. As part of the consultation we are also offering communities the chance to adopt traditional red‘heritage’phone boxes for just £1 through our Adopt a Kiosk scheme.”

The public consultation will run until September 10 and anyone wishing to share their views can do so by emailing esplanning@northlan.gov.uk