Search The Payphone Project


16 thoughts on “Search The Payphone Project

  1. Fantastic project! I do agree with the need for public telephones. I am always deeply disappointed when I find an empty space where a useful communication tool once stood. I applaud your efforts. Thank you for the reference numbers for existing pay phones.

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  2. BitchenAtTheWindinLA90027 · Edit

    Thank you for this effort. I find it a symbol of Western Decaying Neo Liberalized Capitalism that Pay Phones that are working
    and with comfort level (not having to hunch over and talk at loud decibels) are in short supply in Urban areas of US cities.
    Usually the excuse given is that they get destryed, but it should be that major skyscapers have at least threee that are kept
    for public use.

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  3. Hi. Love your project.

    I’ve been taking photos of payphones in and around la county for an art website in working on. Just wanted to say thank you and keep up the good work.

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  4. I have to admit that there is a need for payphone still even in the cell phone age of time..
    I’m not the only person who has been without a charged cell phone… much less had a working charger. Nowadays it actually costs more to get a cigarette lighter in your car so most people don’t even have that option in the newer cars today. But what if you do have I charge port and it doesn’t work any longer or here’s another scenario what if you have a charger and it just came frazzled on you? So what’s the next step you’re broke down you have no phone you’re afraid to really ask anybody for help because most of the people nowadays look too strange or are on drugs or are out to rip you off or they don’t trust you you can’t trust them and guess what there’s no phone in sight. At least if there was a payphone you could call 911 for help or at least have one memorized phone number that you could call collect and at least get some help but nowadays people don’t even and can’t even remember their mates number their own number or even their mothers phone number the phone the cell phone as we know it today is just that it is a cell it has taken you as prisoner. So I would just like to say we do need a few more payphones just in case some crazy freaky thing happens and we get locked out of our cell oh, the solution is put up some payphones periodically through town and on the outskirts of town so people can at least get to a phone safely

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  5. I have to say it but not having public phones is a safety and security hazard. It is also extremely inconvenient. Not everyone has cell phones. At least 10 percent of the country have the common sense to see what a waste of money they are, what a destruction to our personal relationships they cause, and how utterly creepy it is that every single app tracks you everywhere you go and everything you do. The built in GPSes in phones are meant to report your every location every moment of the day. And not, “if you are doing nothing wrong you have nothing to worry about” is incorrect. You have to ask yourself what are they dong wrong that they need to follow your every move. “Creepy” is an understatement. It’s not acceptable to many of us. Privacy matters. Look up Big Data and read up on just how much they manipulate our private lives selling our personal information.

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    1. If no legible information about a payphone’s former owner is printed on the phone you are probably out of luck determining who used to be responsible for it. If it was an independently owned phone (not owned by Frontier or whatever the big telcos are where you are) chances are the company no longer exists anyway.

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  6. Or what if you want to report a crime like sex trafficking but want to remain anonymous and untraceable? I guess you could go buy a burner phone and then dump it but a pay phone would be superior.

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  7. Useful website but needs an update. The Bon Marche became Macy’s and no longer exists. The Doghouse closed last century! The Off Ramp Cafe became the Funhouse years ago; does it still have a pay phone? How many other places have closed due to covid? Please update!

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