Phone booth removal next step in clean-up campaign

People walk by old public telephone booths in Lat Phrao. (Photo by Wichan Charoenkiatpakul)

The Department of Public Work (DPW) plans to remove public telephone booths that are no longer in use throughout the city as part of City Hall's clean-up campaign.

The department deputy chief Prasan Pitakworarat said yesterday the plan to remove 4,417 public telephone booths was under the governor's directives.

A meeting with representatives from TOT Public Co, the Office of National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission and district offices will be held by next week, he said.

He said many booths are old and the telephones are now out of order since booth owners have failed to maintain them.

Many serve as a place where street vendors keep their belongings, which creates a pile of rubbish.

Some boxes were not installed in locations designated by the BMA, he added.

"They have become eyesores and need to be removed to tidy the pavement," Mr Prasan said.

Speaking after the BMA executive meeting, Bensai Keeyapaj, the BMA's deputy spokeswoman, said the attempt to remove phone booths that were set up without the authorities' permission, as well as defunct ones, is a part of the city's clean-up campaign.

There are more than 1,000 illegally installed and poorly maintained booths, she said.

Those which have been illegally set up will be removed immediately.

The BMA will submit a letter to inform companies that own the booths of the reasons behind their removal before the operation takes effect.