New York removed the last city-owned payphone

In a nutshell: It’s the end of an era in New York City as city officials removed the last city-owned payphone this week. The relic, a holdover from before the days of cell phones, recalls an earlier era in our technological evolution.

In 2012, New York officials announced a pilot program to replace some payphones with Internet-connected touchscreen kiosks. However, just eight months after launch, the city was forced to disable web connectivity on the units as they were attracting large crowds who would engage in all sorts of inappropriate behavior including using the kiosks to watch pornography.

LinkNYC, the company that runs the kiosks, still operates them, but without an internet connection. Today they offer free Wi-Fi connectivity as well as access to maps and public service announcements as well as USB ports to charge your devices.

The last remaining payphone was recovered Monday in Midtown Manhattan. It has been transported to the Museum of the City of New York where it will be part of an exhibit dedicated to pre-digital life in the city.

“As a New York native, saying goodbye to the last payphone on the street is bittersweet because of the prominent place they’ve occupied in the city’s physical landscape for decades,” said Matthew Fraser, commissioner of the New York Office of Technology and Innovation.

It may be hard for some to imagine, but not so long ago, landline phones were the norm for real-time voice communication. If you were away from home and needed to make a call, the nearest payphone was where you were going.

It should be noted that NYC still has a handful of private payphones that remain on public property. These “Superman” style booths are located on West End Avenue around 66th, 90th, 100th and 101st streets according to a report by Gothamist.

Image credit: LinkNYC, Dave Bledsoe