| Payphone: Q&A
l Facts
Q&A:
1. How many payphones does Bell Canada operate today?
About 90,000 in Quebec and Ontario.
2. How many types of payphones are operated by Bell?
Bell operates three types of payphones: coin-only, card-only and
hybrid phones (card and coins).
3. How do we determine where to locate a payphone?
Payphones are positioned where there is a significant requirement
for the public to place phone calls.
4. What are the factors Bell considers to determine the location
of a payphone?
Bell assesses among other factors the safety of the location, its
convenience for the public, the hours during which the payphone
will be available to the public, the requests a property owner receives,
and the feasability of the installation.
5. How often are payphones cleaned and/or subject to maintenance?
Payphones are remotely monitored. Monitoring provides Bell with
the information required to establish the cleaning and maintenance
schedules as well as the collection process by providing our technicians
with the amount of money payphones hold.
6. How much money should a payphone generate?
This information is of competitive nature, however payphones must
cover their operation costs.
7. Can we make a call to a specific payphone?
No. It is clearly indicated on the payphone.
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Interesting facts:
1880 Calls can be made from public phones installed in Bell
offices. The payphone was invented that year by William Gray, an
American.
1881 Date of installation of the first public telephone on
non-company premises. The first public phone was installed in a
drugstore in the City of Hamilton, Ontario, in February 1881.
In Montreal, the first two public phones were also installed that
same year on St-François-Xavier Street. In those days, subscribers
paid the owner of the establishment to make the calls. It cost them
5 cents for a 5-minute conversation and 5 cents per blocks of 5
additional minutes. However, non-subscribers paid 10 cents for the
first 5 minutes and 10 cents for additional blocks of 5 minutes.
1893 Small metal coin boxes were installed in Toronto beside
public telephones for money collection. The boxes were not connected
to the phones and the operator had no way of knowing if the caller
had paid.
1899 The first installation of a coin box connected to the
switchboard took place in Montreal in a drugstore at the corner
of St. Catherine and Bleury streets.
1941 Bell installs the first outdoor payphone. Prior to that
date, payphones had always been installed inside shops, restaurants
or other locations.
1946 Bell installs the first two outdoor payphones in Montreal
bearing the blue and white corporate colours. They were located
at the corner of Côte-des-Neiges and Queen Mary. In June of
that same year, there were 10 in total.
1949 Bell operates 1,636 outdoor booths in Quebec and Ontario.
Of this number, about 200 were located in Montreal.
1990 Introduction of the Millenium phone equipped with a
magnetic card reader
Information compiled by:
France Poulin
Chef divisionnaire adjoint - Relations avec les médias (Québec)
Bell Canada
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