Here’s How Many Public Payphones Are Still Working in Indiana

Mobile phones have largely eliminated the need for payphones in Indiana; however, there may be more operating nowadays than you realize.

I’ve never needed to use a payphone. I was born in the late 1990s, around the surge of cell phones, and I still remember getting my first "flip phone" when I was eight or nine. I thought it was the coolest thing ever, being able to make phone calls whenever and wherever. Little did I know that less than a decade later, I’d have a smartphone capable of almost anything.

How Many People Own Cell Phones Globally?

According to Exploding Topics, there are approximately 7.21 billion smartphones worldwide. To put that into perspective, that number accounts for around 90% of the 8 billion people across the globe. With that many cell phones in use today, you would think public payphones would already be long gone. However, a remnant of these easily accessible telephones still remains.

Everything You Didn't Know About Payphones

While Alexander Graham Bell is credited with the invention of the telephone in 1876, it was Richard Busteed of Brooklyn, N.Y., who patented the idea for a telephone cabinet in 1883. According to ABC 10, this later evolved into the first public pay phone, installed by inventor William Gray in 1889. (Fun fact: Gray also invented an inflatable device for catchers in baseball a few years earlier.)

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In the early days of payphones, customers would actually pay for their call after it was concluded, rather than before. It was essentially an honor system where coins were inserted after the fact. This quickly changed to a pre-pay format, and by 1902, there were around 81,000 payphones in operation across the country. That number would peak in 1995 with 2.6 million phones on American streets.

How Many Payphones Are Operating in Indiana?

As cell phone demand grew, several companies exited the payphone business, starting with BellSouth in 2001. AT&T remained until 2007, while Verizon followed in 2011. According to the Indiana Office of Utility Consumer Counselor, pay phones in Indiana fell from about 38,000 to fewer than 1,300 between 2001 and 2016. Nationally, the number dropped from 2 million to just under 100,000 during the same period.

Where Are the Payphones in Indiana Today?

The state of Indiana currently has a "Public Interest Payphone" (PIP) program that keeps payphone service available where there is a compelling public need. The state defines a public interest payphone as one needed at a specific location in the interest of public health, safety and welfare, but not profitable for a service provider to maintain at that location. You can learn more about the PIP program by visiting IN.gov.