Barnet will have to wait to find out whether its payphones are to become a thing of the past.
British Telecom has announced that it wants to remove more than 30,000 payphones from London's streets. The popularity of mobile phones together with demand for more sophisticated services like public Internet services, email and text messaging has led to a 37 per cent drop in calls from conventional call boxes. BT has promised not to target unprofitable payphones in rural areas, however, urban areas like Barnet are ripe for cuts.
Paul Hendron, director of BT Payphones, said: "We will ensure that the geographical spread of kiosks is maintained and that the basic service is protected within easy reach of all communities."
A BT spokesperson ruled out any cuts to traditional red phone boxes. The report identifying which telephone boxes will go is due out in February.
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