Could it be end of the line for village telephone boxes

RESIDENTS who raised concerns about the future of ten telephone boxes have saved at least one of them.
The future of the traditional red kiosks in Richmondshire were put at risk because BT says they are not used often enough.
But locals say there is a need, particularly in Gilling West, where the mobile signal is unreliable, and at Kirby Hill where people living in the almshouses there will have no means of calling for help in an emergency.
However, BT says it is important for communities to talk about their concerns because where problems exist, telephone boxes will be retained and removed from the consultation list. The company has since confirmed the Gilling West box will remain because of people’s fears.
Apart from Gilling West and Kirby Hill, telephone boxes at risk include those at  Aldbrough St John, Eppleby, Forcett, Caldwell, Newsham, Gayles and Dalton.
Vicar for the area Revd Antony Kirby said: “There are quite a few people upset. My mobile signal is alright, but there are some areas where it is not.  There’s a few lorry drivers who use it (the box at Gilling West) because they can’t get signals and they want to get directions.”
He added that concerns were raised during a meeting of the Dyken Trust, which runs the almshouses at Kirby Hill, because not only is the mobile signal weak there, but some of the residents do not have mobile phones.
The problem with lorry drivers, particularly during overnight closures of the A1, was confirmed by Gilling West resident Ken Hunter.
He said: “I live across the road and the people who tend to use it most are lorry drivers. We live in a valley so the mobile signal is very, very weak. I know it isn’t used massively, but it is used.”
Mobile signals are so bad that Mr Hunter’s daughter, who is a doctor, often cannot visit for lunch because she will be out of contact in an emergency.
Mr Hunter also complained that the notice of the intention to remove the phone box was placed inside the box. He added that people only became aware of the move when a woman who is new to the village looked inside. Another notice has since been placed on the side
The objection Mr Hunter lodged agaisnt the removal of the kiosk may have been key to its survival.
BT says it has no intention of removing boxes where mobile signal is weak and, while this can be checked remotely, each one would be checked in situ and would be excluded from the list if the signal was found to be inadequate.
A spokesperson said information received from residents such as Mr Hunter is very useful in determining the future of telephone boxes.
He added: “BT is committed to providing a public payphone service, but with usage declining by over 90 per cent in the last decade, we’ve continued to review and remove payphones which are no longer needed.
“Any removal of payphones is carried out in strict adherence to the Ofcom guidelines and, where appropriate, with the consent of local authorities.
“In all instances where there’s no other payphone within 400 metres, we’ll ask for consent from the local authority to remove the payphone.
“Where we receive objections from the local authority, we won’t remove the payphone. As an alternative to removal, we will continue to actively promote the Adopt a Kiosk scheme to all councils whilst being committed to maintaining the payphones that remain.”
As the phone boxes at Gilling West, Kirby Hill, Newsham, Gayles and Dalton are traditional red ones, the villages can adopt the kiosks for £1.