December 4, 2019 3.49 pm This story is over 50 months old

Calling it a day: 22 phone boxes earmarked for removal in North East Lincolnshire

BT says the use of them has declined

It looks like the end of an era for the traditional telephone box in North East Lincolnshire as BT has earmarked 22 payphones for removal across the region.

Proposals by the telecommunications giant would see the boxes removed from streets in Grimsby, Cleethorpes and Immingham.

The traditional phone box has been a familiar sight on the streets of the region with people often using them for emergency calls.

But officials at BT said the use of the telephone box has declined over the last decade and the need for them in in emergency situations is “diminishing all the time”.

A payphone outside Spa, North Sea Lane in Cleethorpes which is earmarked for removal by BT. Picture: Google.

It added that it was consulting with North East Lincolnshire Council over the removal of the kiosks.

A total of 10 payphones are earmarked for removal in Grimsby including boxes on Cromwell Road, St Nicholas Drive, Chelmsford Avenue, Yarborough Road, Laceby Road, Edge Avenue, Bethlehem Street, Second Avenue and Louth Road.

In Cleethorpes, seven phones are lined up on North Sea Lane, Kingsway, Chichester Road, Grimsby Road, Sandringham Road and Middlethorpe Road.

Meanwhile, two boxes are set for removal in Immingham on Pelham Road and Bluestone Lane.

Further payphones on Station Road in New Waltham, Grimsby Road in Laceby and Station Road in Healing are under threat.

Rick Thompson, payphone planning officer at BT, said in a letter to the authority that the use of the traditional telephone box was in decline and that people could contact emergency services using their mobile phones.

“Overall use of payphones has declined by 90% in the last decade and the need to provide payphone for use in emergency situations is diminishing all the time, with at least 98% of the UK having 3G or 4G coverage,” he said.

“This is important because as long as there is network coverage, it’s possible to call the emergency services even when there is no credit or coverage from your own mobile provider.”


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