An electrical engineer living in rural Vermont is restoring old pay phones for free public use in areas with poor cellular service. Patrick Schlott came up with the idea, blending his love of tinkering with electronics with a need for reliable communication options in the community. He installed his first phone outside a local general store in Tunbridge with the blessing of the store’s owners, and it quickly became a useful local resource, especially in the event of emergencies.
After that first installation, community members requested more phones, leading to additional setups at the library in Thetford and an informational booth in Randolph. Schlott buys old pay phones from auctions, flea markets, or online and refurbishes them in his basement. Each phone connects to an Internet-based analog line and costs only a few dollars a month to operate, which he pays for now, but that may change as the project expands.
Schlott personally manages the phones, even acting as an operator when users dial zero, which connects the caller directly to his cellphone. The phone at the Latham Library has seen 370 calls in five months, often used by students calling parents. Interest in new installations continues to grow, with the next one planned for the library in Essex.
Source: AP NEWS