I drove through the state of Maine one time, well before the cell-phone era. Anyone I’ve ever known who traveled to or lived there said the same thing: Cell phone coverage is really bad.
I wouldn’t know if that has changed in recent years but poor wireless coverage would explain why Maine is, as far as I can tell, the only U.S. state to have executed a coördinated deployment of public interest payphones (PIPs).
PIPs first came into law as part of the 1996 Telecommunications Reform Act. Other states have, or at one time had, laws on the books which allow citizens to request such phones, but aside from Maine I am not aware of any significant number of deployments. Most states appear to have stopped funding PIP programs altogether.
These phones are funded by Maine’s Universal Service Fund, which gets its funding from a fee included on the phone bill of everyone who has a phone. PTS Providers, the nation’s largest payphone service provider, maintains them. Local and N11 calls are free, but long distance calls require coin or credit card payment.
It seems a majority of Maine’s PIPs take incoming calls. That is unusual for public telephones in the U.S., but allowing incoming calls to PIPs seems like a reasonable public safety measure. Stranded people in remote areas should be reachable if a call gets cut off and someone needs to call them back.
Maine’s PIPs are found at a few dozen locations across the state, at places like police stations, general stores, ball parks, etc. Signs above some of them read “Public Interest Phone”, indicating there is no charge to use them for local and N11 calls. Consolidated Communications provides the landline for these phones.
I scraped these numbers from the maine.gov website, which also includes a map of the locations. For this list I added Street View or other imagery when available, and omitted the numbers for disconnected PIPs still listed at maine.gov.
These first phones phones ring several times before going to modem. I think these all allow incoming calls, but you can only connect if someone picks up the phone before the modem starts.
If you have Skype installed you can click the numbers to try and connect with anyone standing nearby willing to answer a ringing payphone. A second batch of PIPs further down this page do not allow incoming.
207-342-2709
Searsmont Fraternity Village General Store
12 Main Street North
Searsmont, Maine
Google Maps user contributed photo by Brian BartlettFraternity Village General Store in Maine207-897-3253
Jay Police Department
340 Main Sreet
Jay, Maine
From the Jay Police Department Facebook pageJay, Maine, Police Department207-439-4312
Kittery Police Department
200 Rogers Road
Kittery, Maine
Not certain about this one but the blue thing might be it.207-865-3069
Freeport Public Safety Building
16 Main Street
Freeport, Maine
207-848-5409
Hermon Recreation Facility
235 Billings Road
Hermon, Maine
207-244-7095
Little Cranberry Island Town Dock
1 Main Street
Islesford, Maine
207-698-1291
Berwick Town Hall Building
11 Sullivan Street
Berwick, Maine
207-384-0928
South Berwick Town Hall Building
180 Main Street
South Berwick, Maine
Couldn't find the phone but here's a port-o-let for you207-942-4579
Glenburn Town Office
144 Lakeview Road
Glenburn, Maine
207-547-2236
Sidney Town Office
2986 Middle Road
Sidney, Maine
207-935-1578
Fryeburg Rescue Building
Rte 302 (89 Bridgton Road)
Fryeburg, Maine
207-364-2071
Rumford Information Booth
Route 2 (6 Bridge St.)
Rumford, Maine
207-456-7163
Wytopitlock School
Route 171
Wytopitlock, Maine
207-364-7153
Hosmer Field Complex
Lincoln Avenue
Rumford, Maine
207-547-2235
Sidney Recreational Ball Field
3025 West River Road
Sidney, Maine
207-667-3487
Lamoine Consolidated School
53 Lamoine Beach Road
Lamoine Maine
Barely visible but the blue sign that reads "PUBLIC INTEREST PHONE" is distinguishable
207-728-6182
Madawaska Fire Station #2
3 Lavertu Road
Madawaska, Maine
These phones do not allow incoming. They all go to modem on the first or second ring.
207-567-3627
Stockton Springs Cape Docks
7 Cape Docks Road
Stockton Springs, Maine
207-942-1580
Bangor Department of Health & Welfare
103 Texas Avenue
Bangor, Maine
207-293-2405
Mt. Vernon Fire Station #2
7 Belgrade Road
Mt. Vernon, Maine
207-695-0260
Greenville Police Department
7 Minden Street
Greenville, Maine
207-567-3619
Sandy Point Beach
126 Hersey Retreat Road
Stockton Springs, Maine
207-736-2136
Winn General Store
985 Main Street
Winn, Maine
207-655-1080
Raymond Public Safety Building
Route 302 (143 Roosevelt Trail)
Raymond, Maine
207-655-1193
Raymond Snack Shack
Tassel Top Park (Route 302)
Raymond, Maine
207-282-6593
Biddeford Central Office
10 Jefferson Street
Biddeford, Maine