ABUSED, MISUSED PHONES DISAPPEAR FROM CITYSCAPE

Numbers have dwindled to only 200 in Nanaimo. Public phones may be a
vital service or an easy way to contact your dealer

As cellphones gained popularity, their coin-operated counterparts were
left to fill a much darker role on Nanaimo city streets.

During the past few years, residents have lobbied for pay phones to be
yanked from their neighbourhoods after becoming hangouts for drugs
addicts while companies slap curfews on their late-night use. In fact,
the majority of outdoor pay phones have already been pulled from
Nanaimo's downtown in response to complaints. The few that remain are
targetted so often by vandals, repairs aren't worth the price.

Pay phone use, of course, has plummetted with the popularity of the
mobile option. Telus operated 22,000 pay phones in B.C. and Alberta as
of last summer, down from 38,000 in 1999. The drop in Nanaimo, a city
where Telus says pay phones receive a lot of abuse, went from about
370 phones five years ago to just 200 today.

Pay phones at indoor facilities, such as malls and pools, don't see
the same kind of problems, but on the streets of certain parts of
Nanaimo, these phones are "lightning rods" for drug activity, police
say.

Telus officials say they work with communities when problems arise,
but claim that removing the phones can cause problems in low-income
neighbourhoods where people may not have regular telephone access.

The majority of pay phone problems stem from drug addicts calling
their suppliers to set up nearby deals, says Cpl. Dave Laberge, head
of the RCMP bike unit.

Issues surrounding the phones have been around for years, but police
and city officials didn't start taking down Nanaimo's pay phones until
2005 with the creation of the "red zone," which prohibited charged and
convicted drug dealers and users from entering areas of the downtown.

The last two phones that were removed on downtown city property were
located on Commercial Street. They were pulled about two years ago.

"One by one, we removed just about every pay phone that was downtown,"
said Laberge, who said police worked with the city, businesses and
residents who were concerned about drug activity surrounding the phones.

In 2008, residents of Nanaimo's south end pushed for the removal of a
phone booth in the 700-block of Haliburton Street after a passerby
found the body of a

27-year-old woman who had died of a drug overdose.

Dozens of addicts would hang out near the phone, said resident Tanya
Hiltz, who lobbied for the change. But now, the area has "quieted
right down." She thinks all pay phones should be scrapped.

"Don't give them a place they can congregate that's access for their
drug activity," she said.

Superette Foods produce clerk Luke Dionne said the store decided a few
years ago to get rid of its pay phone after repeated vandalism. Once
the store across the street also got rid of its public phone, he
noticed an improvement in the area.

"Any drug addict with a quarter can make a phone call to his drug
dealer. I've definitely noticed since there hasn't been any pay phones
around there hasn't been as many ne'er-do-wells hanging around," he
said.

Pay phones are also prone to vandalism and phones in Nanaimo have
taken a lot of damage, says Telus spokesman Shawn Hall.

It costs about $5,000 to replace a pay phone and in some cases it's
just not worth it, he said.

Telus says pay phones still provide an "important role" in certain
areas, including low-income communities.

"What we've also seen is that when we yank those phones out, it can
cause as many problems as they solve because those phones tend to be
in lower-income neighbourhoods where people might not have access to
home phone service," said Hall.

Hall said that when complaints are raised the company tries to find
other options, such as removing the booth, if there is one, to reduce
privacy or putting a curfew on the phone that allows it only to be
used for calling 911 between dusk and dawn. Two Telus-operated phones
have curfews in Nanaimo, he said.

"What we do find is that when we remove a phone because it's being
used for illicit activities, those activities tend to move down the
street. The phone itself is not causing the problem," said Hall.

He wouldn't give specifics about how much money Telus makes on pay
phones, but said they obviously don't bring in as much revenue as in
the past. How profitable a phone is depends on location, he added.

Nanaimo social advocate Gord Fuller said it's unlikely many people
struggling to get by rely on pay phones for communication. At 50 cents
a call, following a 25-cent increase that Telus implemented in August,
a cheap pay-as-you-go cellphone or land line would make far more sense
even if a person is making just a handful of calls each month, he said.

"It continuously amazes me that a lot of homeless people actually have
cellphones," said Fuller, who is chairman of the 7-10 Club meal service.

Per Kristensen, director of information technology for the City of
Nanaimo, said his department hasn't received any complaints about a
lack of pay phones in Nanaimo. There are currently 18 phones on city
property, often in places such as sports facilities.

Hall said pay phones play an important role in places like
transportation hubs, schools and parks where there isn't cellphone
service. And he says Telus, one of six pay phone operators in B.C.,
has no plans to give up on the coin-operated machines.

NUMBER OF NANAIMO PAY PHONES SHRINKING

200: Approximate number of Telus-operated pay phones in
Nanaimo

370: Approximate number of Telus-operated pay phones in Nanaimo about
five years ago

22,000: Approximate number of Telus-operated pay phones in B.C. and
Alberta as of last summer

38,000: Approximate number of Telus-operated pay phones in B.C. and
Alberta in 1999

$5,000: Cost to replace a pay phone

50 cents: Cost to make a pay phone call

18: Number of pay phones on city property

2: Number of Telus-operated phones in Nanaimo that operate on a curfew