Superman would be hard-pressed to find a phone booth to change into his outfit these days.

There is little demand for payphones in this time of Wi-Fi, smartphones and texting, but there are a few still available for use in Kelowna that have yet to be taken away.

According to a Canadian Press article from 2015, the Canadian Radio-television Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) proposed to tighten up the rules companies must follow when they choose to disconnect the last municipal payphone.

Currently, there are two street-side payphones in the downtown Kelowna area: one outside the Kelowna Law Courts on Water Street and another just a block away outside Kelowna Memorial Arena on Doyle Avenue乌鸦传媒攏either are in a booth and both are still connected.

Staff at the Tourism Kelowna waterfront kiosk often get international tourists asking to use the Wi-Fi or the landline to make calls, and only rarely direct people to the downtown payphones.

Hey , when was the last time you used a payphone? This one outside Memorial Arena is still connected..

乌鸦传媒� Mack Britton (@MackBrittonBC)

READ MORE: Freedom Mobile throws hat into Kelowna乌鸦传媒檚 cellphone provider ring

A CRTC survey found that only 32 per cent of Canadians used a payphone even once in 2014乌鸦传媒攁nd that was five years ago.

that lists known payphone numbers for major cities in B.C. sites zero numbers in Kelowna, while significantly smaller municipalities乌鸦传媒� Keremeos and Penticton both have two numbers each listed.

Meanwhile, in the small Village of Coalmont, the town乌鸦传媒檚 only

乌鸦传媒淭he phone booth was great and it was used often,乌鸦传媒� said Diane Stern, owner of the Mozey-On-Inn Motel in the heart of Coalmont.

The booth hasn乌鸦传媒檛 been replaced since the incident in 2015. Instead, Telus installed what Stern referred to as a 乌鸦传媒渏ail-phone,乌鸦传媒� which is the only public phone in the town which has little-to-no cell service

乌鸦传媒淭he 乌鸦传媒榡ail-phone乌鸦传媒� is really only good for calling 9-1-1,乌鸦传媒� Stern said. 乌鸦传媒淭hat乌鸦传媒檚 if people can even find it.乌鸦传媒�

People looking for tows, taxis or almost anything else come to Stern乌鸦传媒檚 motel to make calls; it乌鸦传媒檚 not a problem for them, but it could be when the motel closes their doors in 2021.

乌鸦传媒淲hen we close, they will need to put something better in because the current phone doesn乌鸦传媒檛 cut it. I really hope that it gets replaced,乌鸦传媒� said Stern.

Apart from the two street-side payphones downtown, there are only a few known local spots where payphones could be easily accessed. There are two at the 7-11 in Lake Country and signage for an old phone booth along side Highway 33 in Rutland just outside Olympia Tavern Greek Restaurant.

There have been old-style Telus payphones also spotted at Manteo Waterfront Resort, Jim Lind Arena in West Kelowna, Encore West Kelowna movie theatre, KGH and the Kelowna airport.

Telus乌鸦传媒� Liz Sauv茅 said that the use of payphones has been steadily declining for almost 20 years.

乌鸦传媒淭elus currently has about 8,000 payphones across Canada, primarily in B.C., Alberta, and Quebec. Many payphones go days at a time between use,乌鸦传媒� Sauv茅 said.

乌鸦传媒淎t this point, if we do remove a payphone, it乌鸦传媒檚 generally because the landlord doesn乌鸦传媒檛 want it anymore because it乌鸦传媒檚 not being used, it乌鸦传媒檚 being vandalized or because they乌鸦传媒檇 prefer to put something else in that space.乌鸦传媒�

READ MORE: District, residents, RCMP and ICBC weigh-in on how to use a Lake Country roundabout

Payphones offer affordable, easily accessible and private options for people who may be from low-income families or homeless, but can also be an easy targets for vandals.

Telus also offers a due to the hardships some face due to the lack of affordable communication options and declining availability of payphones. Currently, more than 10,000 British Columbians use Telus乌鸦传媒� Mobility for Good program.

These payphones can be completely useless in some communities or be an essential lifeline in others.

Either way, with phone booths all but extinct and payphones seemingly close behind, new options will soon be needed for low-income users and costume-changing superheroes.

To report a typo, email:
newstips@kelownacapnews.com.

newstips@kelownacapnews.com
Like us on and follow us on .