Today's Pay Phone Booth

Know how hard it is to find a working pay phone these days?

Some wag has solved the problem right here in Woodstock with an old Princess telephone. Check out the SBC pay phone in front of the Shell station in Woodstock. Wouldn't we all be surprised if you could really make a call from it?

With the advent of cellphones stuck to almost every waking person it is getting harder and harder to find a working pay phone when you need it. And can you blame the phone companies? Almost no one uses a pay phone these days.

When you do need one, will it be in working condition? Will you have the right change? Will you even know how much change is needed to make your call? Will you try to use a telephone credit card for your call, and you know how much the "hit" is for placing the call? Often there is a flat "service charge" just to connect a call from a payphone, and that's before the per-minute charge (or the flat rate of a certain number of minimum minutes).

Will it be one of those "robber" pay phones that charge you an arm and a leg to make a local call? Or for which you'll have to take out a loan to afford a long-distance call?

Will the City be requiring removal of pay phones that have been taken out of service?