BT says many of its public phone boxes are running at a loss

Many of the phone boxes BT wants to close are in isolated rural areas of the South West.

But the company says, despite operating at a loss, it will guarantee keeping a minimum of 20% of the region's 3,500 phone boxes open.

The increase in the number of people using mobile phones is thought to be the reason the BT phone boxes are not being used regularly.

No pay phones in a rural area can possibly be profitable Roger Watts, Filleigh Parish Council

Of the 3,500 public phone boxes in the South West, BT is planning to remove about 650 of these - one in five.

Two of the phone boxes that may go are close to the north Devon village of Torrington.

Pensioner Bella Nicholl, 86, and her son use one of the isolated boxes regularly and say they are dismayed at BT's plans.

Mrs Nicholl said: "The phone box is very important because we couldn't walk all the way to Stibb Cross.

"We've got no conveyance to get there with and there's no bus service here."

Social need

The local council at Filleigh near South Molton says that in a three month period last winter the two phone boxes in the village were only used 100 times.

Roger Watts from the parish council says if the boxes close it will be another nail in the coffin of the local rural community.

He said: "We haven't got the facilities people have in the urban areas and no pay phones in a rural area can possibly be profitable.

"I think there is definitely a social need for them here."

A spokesman for BT says the company has not made a final decision on these particular phone boxes.