End of an era

New York City has just hung up on a tradition dating back more than a century, taking away its last sidewalk pay phone. ABC News' Will Ganss has the 411.

[@wallflower1852]

I was born in the mid-90s. I still remember dialling random telephone numbers just for fun...

[@mytravls]

That means you did that until mid 00s?

[@eatpigsnot]

i thought you sounded familiar!

[@angryox3102]

Was born in the late 80s and did it in the mid 90s

[@DavidLopez-vc2tf]

@@eatpigsnot lmao

[@ChiTown_GunEmDown773]

You know you can still do that on your touchscreen lol

[@megatronusorionpax4900]

I feel like phone booths can still be useful especially for kids who are lost or anyone who doesn't have a phone or who's phone is dead it would definitely be a useful thing

[@pleasedontwatchthese9593]

They are useful if you all alone, no on is around, you somehow have change, and its at night when all of the phone stores are closed.

[@ibrake4rappers]

i lost my phone once and i was desperate for a payphone but couldnt find a single one

[@stillbuyvhs]

Useful, but not profitable. :( (In theory that means there are better uses for the same resources, but I don't always like theories.)

[@Scambush]

Problem is today no one knows their loved ones' numbers by memory. I don't even know my fiancee's. Only know my Dad's since I knew it for a very long time before smartphones.

[@sm-yj7nu]

@@Scambush that part

[@salruiz7556]

Let me get this straight we have now reached that point in time where pay phones are displayed in museums now....... like in the MOVIES!?!?!

[@cashewnuttel9054]

Let me get this straight they are mourning pay phones? Will they mourn the 3 dead at a Tulsa hospital after another shooting massacre because Americans just won't get rid of guns already?

[@spencersholden]

Yes

[@samplautz5586]

I know. I’m 20 and this makes me feel old

[@brandon1234]

Soon the smartphones will follow

[@richardhernandez7872]

im 20 and i always loved payed phones never used them but they were so cool lol

[@warrinbang1191]

When your cell phone battery dies and you're left all alone you're gonna miss being able to call momma from the local pay phone. 😭

[@MEQUPWER]

u can make free calls to anywhere in the us on the kiosk!

[@okamijubei]

Yeah but because of power banks and emergency dynamo radios, they also do their jobs for recharging your phone.... Out of range on the other hand...

[@krunkle5136]

Don't worry. You just have to talk to strangers and ask to use their phone a feel like a bumb.

[@mashy712]

Just use the Kiosk to charge your phone.

[@imdavid4875]

oh i will miss payphones too.,.

[@nolanrandall4242]

I used a pay phone in Toronto last summer after my iPhone died. And it turned out to be very useful for my situation. I think pay phones will always be necessary. It's not like everyone alive has cell phone access all the time.

[@MEQUPWER]

u can make free calls to anywhere in the us on the kiosk!

[@Eli-ss9gj]

@@MEQUPWER bruh said Toronto lmao that’s not the US

[@krunkle5136]

Unfortunately there's this mentality in the US of things needing to be obsolete even though in some situations make that thing still necessary. All hail the market.

[@0xm3trix]

What is this "pay phone" you guys speak of??

[@lisavanderpump7475]

Ya but payphones are so dirty and gross , u can just go into a store or a cellphone store and they will let u charge ur phone if it died

[@Victor-kt6qn]

I've still used them to this day. My phone dies, forgot it, or forgot to pay my phone bill. Once when I was 14 I got lost so I had to call my dad with a payphone. Those things save lives.

[@D33Lux]

Needed one last week, luckily a kind woman let me use the phone of her restaurant.

[@colossusforbin5484]

I remember when I was a kid, I walked up to a pay phone, pulled the change lever and a handful of quarters came out. Can't remember how much it was. Maybe $3 or $4 worth, but that was like $100 to me in those days.

[@sm-yj7nu]

Change levers memories the big one on the side before the little one in front

[@feiwong4310]

That's so cool. I would always check the phones at school sometimes I'd get change as well.

[@agyos]

It is not just sad, it is dismissive of those who cannot afford, or who don’t know how to use cell phones, or modern technology…i.e., many elderly, as well as the poor. How can they call for help, or information, or to get in contact with a family member or friend, if needed? Also…gone is the free call to an operator who can possibly be of assistance, or 911. Yep! Beyond sad. Thank you for the report.

[@donakidder3424]

Exactly! I've broke my phone and it's so hard to borrow a phone from a business. I refuse to ask an individual for the phone loan because they worry you will take off with it.

[@mytravls]

Who cares about elderly? 😂 My dad is 71 now. Been using the cell for many years now. He doesn’t care anymore. I believe people older than him are o it a few or may not even know how to communicate. Again, not being disrespectful but saying from experience after watching several older folks.

[@ChandraNYC]

I share the nostalgia for the old school pay phones. However, free phone calls can be made from the new Link kiosks; and 911 calls are always free, even if you're behind on your phone bill.

[@internet2055]

@@mytravls BS

[@republicoftexas4651]

They literally have free phones for the elderly that a toddler could use. Everything disabled except big giant Call and End Call buttons. They'll even send someone to your house to program number into it. Care providers, Medicaid, Meals on Wheels will assist them in getting signed up.

[@momoqin9296]

As a 14 year old, I’m actually quite sad about this

[@jjgameshow2682]

Me too.

[@andreadalvarez6145]

Same :(

[@Airhotpilot]

I never even used a payphone yet it's sad..

[@israelsaiyangod7195]

Don't be ur too young to care anyways

[@truefacts128]

@@israelsaiyangod7195 People could believe what they want to

[@melanie7781]

The pay phones should not go away. Not all people have a cell phone. In an emergency pay phones are a good thing.

[@ChandraNYC]

Phone calls are free from the new Link kiosks.

[@HappyStrawberry14]

What are you talking about?? Homeless people have cell phones in this country. I don’t know anyone that doesn’t have a cell phone.

[@untouchable360x]

@@HappyStrawberry14 I once saw a homeless dude with the newest iPhone. He had a better phone than me. lol

[@olindetroit7636]

Here in the U.S, Government agencies are giving cell phones and internet services to anyone who lives below the poverty line.

[@chuckyyes]

@@untouchable360x yea, Iphones are cheap now.

[@stephs8277]

Damn, my parents met at a payphone so kinda sad that they're vanishing.

[@Tyler.254]

So simple and easy! That doesn't happen anymore these days and i hate it. Relationships are hard to get these days

[@mingfanzhang8927]

Woke

[@amberwright6918]

Dude I'm so into that news reporter. He needs his own show!

[@BeardedDragonMan1997]

whats him name?

[@radl3nt]

@Factual Truth Damn.😂

[@davidovics92]

@Factual Truth ?

[@Dylan-xx2tk]

@@davidovics92 it means he's the sub in a relationship. People in this comment section are judging him by his voice (which sounds similar to a stereotypical gay guy)

[@DIvInItysCourse_16-91]

@Factual Truth lmao

[@B1LL9465]

I remember my dad would always tell me to carry change with me in case I needed to use a pay phone

[@icedove101]

They made payphones free here in Australia instead of just removing them.

[@feiwong4310]

That's really cool

[@neverangel24officialytchan87]

Wow.

[@bretts4544]

Guess it just wouldn’t be the American thing to do lol

[@pleasedontwatchthese9593]

I guess if a lot of places have free wifi a free phone does not seem like a big deal to do

[@icedove101]

​@@pleasedontwatchthese9593 they're helpful for the homeless, and great for times when your own phone isnt working.

[@cityofabscissae]

I always thought it was neat you could call a payphone, see who picked up, and possibly have a random conversation with someone you didn't know at a popular place like Times Square!

[@lindyc.2552]

I am 63 and remember pay phones everywhere! But, I contemplate how much times have changed. I remember one of the songs that I liked (while growing up) in the 70's. It was released in 1972 when I was13. It was Operator by Jim Croce. I figure any young people today have no idea what those lyrics mean... especially the last part of the song when he tells the operator "you can keep the dime." I am getting old, and out of date myself. But, I wouldn't trade my life's experiences growing up in the 60's and 70's for anything! I even remember the old party lines and dialing 0 to get the operator to help me make a call. Also, I remember my childhood phone number being a combination of letters and numbers. But, I love all my childhood memories, even if technology has advanced so dramatically, give me the good old days of pay phones.

[@FriedRice3519]

very epic that you got to grow up in good times.

[@lindyc.2552]

@@FriedRice3519 Other generations may say that they had the best childhood times. But, I truly feel that my generation was the last generation that really got to grow up in innocence and real freedom! We had good long normal childhoods, without having to grow up fast. (Unlike kids today who are bombarded with images, sights and fears that cause them to grow up fast)! Growing up in the 60's and 70's families were still much more together and traditional. You didn't have the Hugh threat of perverts after you that kids have today. We didn't need active shooter school drills. We didn't worry about global warming, earth shattering asteroids hitting us, super vulcanos (like Yellowstone) taking us out... Yes, there was Vietnam, but, as a young kid, that seemed far away. We never worried about deadly viruses like Covid or Monkey Pox. We weren't glued to little tiny screens day and night! We went outside to play everyday. We would be gone all day and our parents never worried. They knew we were okay. They would just call us for supper or when it got dark. Even after dark we could talk them into letting us go back out to catch fireflies. You knew all your neighbors. And all the parents in the neighborhood looked out for everyone's kids. We drank from the garden hose. We played in the mud and dirt. We played with toys that today's parents would freak out about. We went on typical family vacations in our station wagons piled high with baggage. We never wore seatbelts! When your parents went around a curve that was the time to slam your siblings against the car door. Then the next curve they would slam you against your door. Wow, we had soooo much fun growing up. And the music on our transistor radios was, I think, the greatest music of all time! Music like America, Bread, The Guess Who, Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith, the Carpenters, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Pink Floyd, The Moody Blues... The list of AWESOME music from that time just goes on and on! It also has always been interesting to me that I was born that very same month that "the music died." Do you know what month and year that was in Rock & Roll history? But, the 60's and 70's was a most wonderful time to be growing up in America! I wouldn't trade my childhood memories for anything.

[@wizardsuth]

I was searchin' (searchin') on a one-way street. I was hopin' (hopin') for a chance to meet. I was waitin' for the operator on the line. -- from _Sweet Talkin' Woman_ by ELO

[@fredlandry6170]

I remember when I was a kid in the 80’s they were just about everywhere.

[@bobabooey4537]

Life was great as a kid. I remember being 10 years old and on rare occasion reaching in and finding a quarter left in a pay phone. Reach in to that little silver door at the bottom for coin return and hope for the jack pot of 25 cents. I remember first time at an airport and seeing 20 pay phones lined up on a wall, it was like heaven lol.

[@empirestate8791]

Pay phones can be very useful at times. I once forgot my cell phone and needed to call someone from the local library, so I used the pay phone. I imagine a lot of people would find themselves in similar situations. Sometimes the battery dies, other times you forget the phone. I also imagine a lot of elderly people may not have cell phones. Phone boots don't need to be as ubiquitous as they once were, but keeping a few here and there would come in handy!

[@VOLTRONDEFENDER4440]

I remember the payphone song! This gives me nostalgia just hearing that music on this video!

[@randomtees]

College have blue light phones lined all throughout campus for emergency calls. You're telling me that the didn't think to repurpose those pay phones into emergency-only phones in New York City of all places, where crime is once again rising significantly?

[@caitlinsoliman1658]

I think it is a good idea to have them in case of an emergency where cellphones don't work

[@TigerTT]

Most of them smell like piss and don't work lol

[@krunkle5136]

With today's technology they don't even have to be expensive to make.

[@giospage]

your phoene doesnt work so you drive 4 hours to find the nearest payphone that makes sense

[@davidperry4013]

I remember that my local movie theater got rid of payphones in 2003 when I was growing up, I was still in elementary school back then. Payphones were in a much higher rate of decline in Texas due to the low cost of living.

[@justclaudiabusiness]

Many homeless people use a pay phone near a CVS around the corner where I work. I don’t understand why can’t they just keep them. What’s the harm? This is sad.

[@Amanda-py8ff]

Pay phones 📞 should be in small and big cities for homeless people. It’s important to take care of homeless people’s safety. It’s not a privilege it’s just being good normal people.

[@jeromecabral192]

Back in the 80s us kids used to make prank calls and call the operator to find numbers who accept collect calls

[@feiwong4310]

Did you ever make a collect call prank call? Lol

[@jeromecabral192]

@@feiwong4310 yep at the age of 8 til I was 13

[@bigpedro559]

I remember using a Payphone to call my grandma to pick me up from the mall and just looking in the big yellow pages book wasn't looking for anything specific just went through the book 😂

[@Beth9228]

I remembered seeing phone booths back in the 80’s and the 90’s.

[@Marylandbrony]

The real reason is because they don’t want you to leave the Matrix.

[@traildoggy]

They will bring them back, but this time ironically. Only hipsters will use them, even though they have a cell phone in their pocket. They will rave about the rich, old school tone and satisfying 'button-feel' they get from a real vintage pay phone.

[@krunkle5136]

Buttons are so much better than touch.

[@suicunesolsan]

What is this trend of people not knowing what irony is anymore...

[@ll-nr5so]

Pabst blue ribbon beer YUCK

[@ITGirlll]

This was a good story, by a good reporter.

[@quantumphaser]

This just makes me feel old. Superman can't help you anymore, New York. Clark Kent has nowhere left to change outfits.

[@josephinenilsson1541]

Wow. I live in Sweden and don’t think we’ve had phone booths since the early 2000’s. I sade a Phoebe booth in Berlin five years ago and me and my friends were ecstatic about the retroness of that. Can’t believe New York has had them until now, how sad it couldn’t have stayed.

[@empressx_]

i remember using the pay phone at the airport because my phone was dead.

[@ramonsmediablog]

That’s awesome it’s being placed in a museum.

[@iCANT_BELIEVE_YOU_SAID_THAT]

They should have at least leave one there as a historical landmark.

[@draculastraphouse6637]

That last time I used a payphone was like 2 years ago, I think it was the last one in town because I haven't seen another one ever since that one got removed

[@internet2055]

So confirmed, there will be no sequel to The Phonebooth movie

[@billythekidder7182]

Pay phones cost money to operate and barely get used. There are free cell phones for the poor and elderly some with big buttons. This was inevitable.

[@krunkle5136]

I'm sure if they were still common where I live they'd still be used frequently. This is a shame.

[@pleasedontwatchthese9593]

I have seen homeless people with better smart phones that I had. After that I knew payphones where dead

[@justinjohnson3694]

R.I.P Pay phones you will surely be missed 🙌

[@rara1800]

I still think they are necessary what if your phone dies and there’s an emergency? Also people are not comfortable with allowing someone borrow their phone on the spot.

[@toxiflexx04]

The kiosk make free calls

[@rafsanAhmed93]

This payphones used to reminds me that life was good back then now its sucks.

[@theia1653]

Around town where I am, there are only the housings that remains of the pay phones. Only one phone that's intact but disconnected. Relics of the past.

[@charlesmathuesiii1206]

I work for Verizon for 33 and a half years here in Philadelphia and working in West Philadelphia. In 2007 I had to remove the rest of the coin phones in that area. I had to go into children's hospital and I asked the young nurse behind a desk and asking her where was the coin phone on the fourth floor. Her response to me what's a coin phone? Priceless I will never forget it!

[@Brandonhayhew]

These pat phone should remain as a historical sites

[@bryancorts5389]

There goes the 80's...

[@ellpcg4546]

Makes you feel old when a what used to be a very commonly used item gets taken to a museum. Fml. Would actually like to have an payphone in my house just as decoration though

[@SippingOnRealiTEA]

So sad to see it

[@sololuisvlogs]

I don’t see a problem with pay phones . Ever since cellphones were available to everyone crime has hit a all time high. The world is less safe today than when I was a kid … ✌️

[@PuttinOnTheRiffs]

Lol the ability to call from your pocket is the reason for civilizations decline? Cell phones aren’t the problem. The camera pointing at you from your smart phone screen is. Conflating two different things a bit here. At that rate, ever since they were able to get cheese and tomato sauce in a tortino pizza roll society has just never been the same.

[@olindetroit7636]

I'm assuming that was meant as a joke😉

[@tay2944]

Crime has went down since the 90s

[@talanross3141]

I remember seeing pay phones anywhere while I was little, I don’t remember much but I could ask my dad or mom to call my grandparents and we would. I’m only 15, so this was 8-11 years ago, i know still young but it was nice

[@catharsisgpars2222]

Yet to forget the insult from payphone song even if its end of an era

[@RatfromNadeaust]

People don’t remember phone numbers like that anymore. So if we ever went to jail good luck.

[@jamesm887]

I don’t think it’s a good idea to get rid of pay phones, it’s not like everyone always has a cell phone or always has a phone charge. I even think they should keep pay phones at airports to make international phone calls by land line. I do not have an international phone plan either.

[@toxiflexx04]

Apparently you can make free calls from the kiosk, and charge your phone at the kiosk. What is the point of keeping around old technology that is an inconvienience?

[@Ively-Creations]

Just a few years ago when my son was about 5 I told him to take a pic next to a pay-phone bc they would one day become 'relics' - I feel pretty old right now! 😉

[@soulassassin0g]

A few years ago I saw a bunch of kids playing with a payphone. They were climbing on it, picking up the phone and pretending they were talking to someone, they even put quarters in it and obviously it was an abandoned phone so the mechanism inside was missing; they were basically playing make belief with a relic of the pass.

[@barryjohnson409]

I'm going to start a payphone photo museum.

[@octoman511]

sooooo if you need to make an emergency call and lost your cell phone or the service does not work... what do you do?

[@trevorallen3212]

If I recall correctly these are actually cheap to make phone calls. Like a couple of quarters vs buying a $200 to $400 cellphone for calls makes a huge of a difference. Essentially if you are living in the streets near broke good luck borrowing someone's phone or buying one in the matter. If that isn't possible danger implication to the public safety then I don't know what is. We can't forget about elders too. I understand most folks have these phones but, they still aren't all cheap to get them.

[@Lamin_G]

It took quite a while for NY City to finally phase out cable street pay-phones; they are relatively late in the game - for a major U.S. city. In a way, we are still using pay phones - somebody ultimately pays for the service on your smartphone; they've (phones) just gone digital and have become mobile, satellite-assisted and multitasking devices.

[@pasqualinamichelaconsiglio9391]

Come to Canada. We still have pay phones.

[@olindetroit7636]

Appearly you have never visit NYC or failed to watch this video completely clearly. The video was about removing one of the last physical/structure of the phone booths that were STILL STANDING. There haven't been anything real active street pay phones in NYC for many many many years. Any body who've visit NYC can tell you that. 🙂

[@Lamin_G]

@@olindetroit7636 "Never visited NYC"? Guilty as charged! "Has not clearly watched the video"? Nope, just fantasy on your part. You shot yourself on the foot by acknowledging that the video focuses on the last "physical structures" of phone booths "that were still standing", for they would have otherwise been removed like the other phone booths presumably were, when phones were removed from those booths. Obviously, the infrequent use of traditional pay-phones over a long stretch of time would be reason enough to cease continued use of phone booths-hence, the removable of the last holdouts of phone booths. 🙂

[@TravisDoesKayakFishing]

As a teenager... 1...800...C....O....L.....L....E....C....T - "Say your name at the beep" BEEP "Ready Mom" "Your party declined the call" 15 minutes later my ride arrived

[@gonzoducks8]

"Momit'sme At(crosstreets)" Pretty much used this up until from 12-16 years old.

[@apara2005]

Omg, yes. Totally forgot doing this as a kid. Lol!!!!!!!!

[@TravisDoesKayakFishing]

@@gonzoducks8 Every day man

[@TravisDoesKayakFishing]

@@apara2005 fun times lol.

[@yimmyyams5554]

I live in Pennsylvania we still have them on corners. What an inconvenience when there's an emergency and you have no phone for whatever reason.

[@chrisw4997]

I'm gonna use my local phone booth 52 times within the next year.

[@matthewscott1091]

I’m American, but personally I don’t think the UK should get rid of the red phone booths. Perhaps change their purpose but not eliminate them. Here, our phone booths aren’t cute like the UK’s, they’re just dirty old phones. But to people outside of the UK (i.e. tourists), those red booths along with double decker busses, the Union Jack, Big Ben, Stone Henge & more are classic symbols of England and part of what makes it so charming to visit.

[@michaeltaylor1603]

We got a lotta Red booths in Houston, TX. They are on Upper Kirby Drive as decorations. Original London Bridge is in Texas too. Next to London, Texas IS where it's AT!

[@matthewscott1091]

@@michaeltaylor1603 I’m born & raised & still live in Texas. Just northwest of Houston but I haven’t been downtown much because I hate traffic, lol.

[@chris135x]

I'm from Cali and remember seeing payphones everywhere in the public. Pacific Bell was the company that provided these payphones. It's different not seeing them around now, but they aren't needed when smartphones are accessible to everyone.

[@AAP0000]

They should leave one just as a memory, but big corporations are super greedy and desperate to squeeze every penny out of every piece of property.

[@sm-yj7nu]

When they went up to 50 cents I was mad lol. I used them often & bought phone minute & long distance cards. I think there may be a few at the train/greyhound bus station that still work I seen a few years ago...

[@JordanCrawfordSF]

Actually they are still useful. In fact I made this comment on a pay phone. It took me 20 minutes to type out.... but I had the quarters handy.

[@roachtoasties]

There are still plenty of pay phones around Los Angeles. Of course, none of them work.

[@steamstream777]

Keep a payphone there as a tourist attraction

[@thatguy12558]

They should leave phone chargers in booths next to phones for those who dont have a mobile one

[@lonesoul663]

Sometimes I ditch my cell phone at home and walk around without one like the good old days.

[@laker4life36]

Classic and Iconic.

[@CubeAtlantic]

idek, but i used to uniquely love the Phone Booths as a kid they always boost-up that interesting, & dope nostalgia.

[@BunnyVelicheti]

I don’t know why it is sad, even though I have never used one in my life, probably cause they came in an era where social media streaming wasn’t dominating our lives and we just had memorable personal conversations and lived like people. And when these things were up, there were some many golden eras with many of our greats still alive. 😕

[@D33Lux]

If you weren't born pre 1980's you won't understand much.

[@BunnyVelicheti]

@@D33Lux Oh I read my sentence again lol and it sounds like I don’t understand it but I actually mean I also got a sad feeling even though I don’t know how one works.

[@ihuman7253]

I like the idea of replacing them with emergency medical equipment like the defibrillator ❤

[@kubwayodavid]

OK this was actually enjoyable to watch.

[@caesar7734]

What if your mobile phone dies and you don’t have a charger? And what if you then try to ask strangers to borough theirs but think that you are trying to rob them?

[@toxiflexx04]

Kiosk makes free calls

[@Minadarling119]

Pay phone? I always thought they were NYC’s public restrooms🤷‍♂️

[@jorgeruiz3096]

Lmao this reporter dude is everything

[@InternetMouse]

This is saddening. Im not even old. Im like 20 here but i grew up with pay phones. Its just so weird being in a timeline where we consider payphones to be retro now. Its just wow. Never knew that.

[@nicholasr.9317]

Exactly

[@999madgamer]

my home still has a phone line plug, it's painted over but it's still there

[@DP-hy4vh]

No more dialing the phone booths number and quickly hanging up so the phone will keep ringing until someone picks up the receiver. 📞🔔

[@ll-nr5so]

cellphones do not work in situations like 9/11 where airwaves are jammed. wired phones always work

[@jimmyweathersby327]

Damn pay phone lasted longer than blackberry

[@brucelee5576]

You have a collect call from " mom pick me up from the McDonald's"

[@jaywires717]

Cellphones killed the pay phone.

[@raniatariq9585]

Why??? Some people don't have phones??? And snatching is a thing??? Nobody will willing just give anyone their phone for a call, police stations are not on every block, shops don't always have land lines that are publicly placed and neither do restaurants. This was not thought out.

[@alexeistukov-ued5970]

imagine the movie DIE HARD 3 without the payphones

[@loui30]

Last time I used one of these was in 2016. My phone died and my car overheated so I had to call my parents through a payphone.

[@calimorales6817]

One thing that I’ll never go are those payphones on the side of the freeway

[@sallyphillips9175]

How much was charged for a call on a pay phone before they were carted away? Last I knew, it was a quarter, but that was decades ago.

[@michaeltaylor1603]

As a Gen X kid. Keep @ $20 cash in pocket & $1 worth of change for pay phone for an emergency. I'm 55 yrs. old. been in a taxi less times than a 5 finger hand count. LOL!

[@sallyphillips9175]

@@michaeltaylor1603 I turn 55 in October and have ridden in a taxi precisely once.

[@michaeltaylor1603]

@@sallyphillips9175 LOL! I still can clearly remember mine was from school to grandma's house & in Las Vegas Nov. 2009. HaPpY early B-day!

[@sallyphillips9175]

@@michaeltaylor1603 Mine was in Daytona Beach during the annual Turkey Rod Run. My friend and I took a taxi from our hotel to a bar. This was in the late 80s. Thank you for the early birthday wishes!

[@olindetroit7636]

I'm a long time New Yorker And the last time I remembered using an active pay phone was many many years ago. The price was 25 cents that was Only good for a conversation lasting less than 5 minutes. Most people living in NYC, have moved on. Time changes and so do technology. There was a time when we need Fresh milk and the Milk man would dropped it off at your door. Today...Supermarket/shops 😑. Move on.......

[@yodaddy9362]

There's pay phones at my job. It's crazy and they still work.

[@JL0ndon]

The link nyc billboards also let you make phone calls for free. They are like a phone booth just no change. They also have a connection to emergency services and a camera for video calls.

[@agyos]

Well…that makes the removal of pay phones, and the free operator, or 911 call, a little less depressing…except the link billboards will probably never be be able to be used by the elderly, and others who are not versed in technological processes…especially in times of panic or need. Progress can be wonderful…but it can also have a very dark side-effect….not discovered until it becomes almost impossible to rectify.

[@JL0ndon]

@@agyos the 911 emergency on the link things are a giant button that says press for 911…

[@sm-yj7nu]

Please explain? TIA

[@JL0ndon]

@@sm-yj7nu on one side of the billboard toward the sidewalk there is a tablet and number pad with a big red button for emergency services and you can make calls, look for directions and charge your phone on the tablet and under with its usb outlets

[@TurkeyFaceX]

I can't be the only one that laughed when he said it would be displayed in a museum.

[@sillkthashocker]

I used to know the trick to make payphones ring indefinitely, good times :)

[@DTD110865]

There used to be at least two British pay phones in Port Jefferson, New York. The one on Main Street had the phone removed, and it has become a frequent target of vandalism.

[@Smetkowski24]

Has anyone ever picked one up that was ringing?

[@mvpandrew93]

*when your boss tries to contact you off hours, tell him to call the payphone.*

[@allinonethegreat]

The last pay phone I used was on Canal St on 9/11 when the first building was collapsing I remember there was a line in back of me and all I can hear was this on guy behind me scared frantic saying “please please I need to use the phone” then I let him use it it was crazy that day

[@albertf.9198]

Wow! I used them all over Manhattan as a bike messenger before 2002.