Whanganui’s last payphones could be turned off in next few months

A payphone on Guyton St, Whanganui. Photo / Mike Tweed

Around 20 payphones remain in Whanganui, but they could be disconnected in a matter of months.

In a statement Spark NZ, which operates the network, said Chorus’ decommissioning of copper had been accelerating across the country.

“This means the majority of phone booths will be disconnected and stop working in the coming months,” the statement said.

“As such, Spark will be working to schedule the removal of the physical booths.”

The Chronicle reported in 2024 that 48 copper landlines would be shut down in rural Whanganui by the following March, with Chorus’ entire copper network ending by 2030.

In 2022, Spark had around 2000 phone booths across the country, but began switching some off that June, starting in Auckland and Wellington.

Spark said the company had operated the booths for more than 40 years, but usage was declining.

A plan for a “modern alternative” was temporarily suspended, “as we have not been able to agree a path forward in Auckland”.

“The proposed modernised phone booths include free connectivity (calling and WiFi) for all New Zealanders, added resilience during emergency situations with satellite capability, and can operate with financial sustainability through the integration of digital screens for out-of-home advertising.”

Spark said under the proposal, councils would be provided with a free communications allocation on the digital screens, and could take them over in emergency events.

“In the past, this revenue came in the form of coins, and later credit cards and prepaid phone cards, provided by the public in exchange for a phone call.

“Under this new model, the public would gain access to free connectivity, with the funding being provided through advertising instead.”

More than $50 million would be needed “to build and deploy new digital infrastructure”, along with maintenance and operational costs.

The Spark statement said public connectivity still had an important role to play, particularly for vulnerable groups.

“International examples demonstrate that modernised alternatives have strong appeal and uptake by the community.

“For example, Telstra’s [Australia] deployment of free calling through its phone booths saw over 25 million free calls made in 2024, including 300,000 emergency calls.”

The company remained open to investing in modernised phone booths.

Mike Tweed is a multimedia journalist at the Whanganui Chronicle. Since starting in March 2020, he has dabbled in everything from sport to music. At present his focus is local government, primarily Whanganui District Council.