By Taylah Eastwell
Future generations will never experience the mad scramble for spare change when needing to make a call after Telstra announced its 15,000 public payphones are now free.
The telco giant announced on Tuesday 3 August that calls to standard fixed lines or mobiles are completely free of charge across the country.
And just when you thought payphones were dead anyway, Telstra confirmed 11 million calls were made across Australia in the last twelve months from payphones, including 230,000 to critical services like 000 and Lifeline.
According to Telstra, the most used Telstra payphone in Victoria is located on King St, Dandenong opposite the entrance to the Dandenong Market.
Telstra CEO Andrew Penn said this decision meant everyone could make a free local call, describing the service as a “vital lifeline”.
“Telstra payphones are now free phones for everyone to anywhere in Australia. They are an iconic and critical part of our community, and for many Australians, the availability of a payphone is a vital lifeline, especially for those vulnerable including the homeless, people who are isolated or someone escaping an unsafe situation.
“That’s why I have taken this decision to make national calls from payphones free, because they play such a critical role in our community, particularly in times of need and for those in need,” Mr Penn said.
Penn said his decision was made after he saw firsthand the queues of people waiting in line to use a payphone to tell their family and friends they were safe after a bushfire, cyclone or other natural disaster that had taken the mobile network down.
“I can only imagine the relief their families feel knowing their loved one is safe,” he said.
“During COVID-related lockdowns, we’ve seen domestic and family violence agencies report a 60 per cent rise in new clients seeking help for the first time, and an increase in abusive behaviours overall. It’s not always easy for people in these situations to use a home phone or their mobile to get help, so I hope making payphone calls free might play a small part in helping them get the assistance they need.
Telstra said its payphones have previously been made free to communities devastated by natural disasters when communications were vital to keep communities connected.
The telco also made domestic calls free across nearly 600 payphones in remote Indigenous communities in 2020 to ensure these areas remained connected during the COVID-19 pandemic
The Salvation Army’s Major Brendan Nottle welcomed today’s news, describing it as “an absolute game changer” for many of the people we work with across the nation.
“The reality is this piece of infrastructure is absolutely critical because a lot of Australians either don’t have a mobile phone, lose it or the phone’s charger, or simply run out of credit,” Mr Nottle said.
“Connection is absolutely vital for every human being, but particularly for those who are vulnerable. It’s really important for them to break down that sense of social poverty, social isolation, and to connect with a friend or with support services.”
The Star Mail understands all international calls and calls to premium and satellite numbers will still incur a cost. Telstra Air remains free to eligible Telstra customers.
Payphones will also become coinless from 1 October with Telstra Phonecards recommended for dialling international and premium numbers.
