An event took place in New York that marked the end of a whole era with the richest cultural and historical layers – the last payphone was removed from the streets of the city. Previously recognizable stalls were one of the city’s landmarks, but the ubiquity of cell phones gradually made them obsolete.
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The legendary payphone replacement program began under Mayor Bill de Blasio in 2014, when the city announced it would accept proposals to modernize the service.
The authorities have chosen CityBridge to design and maintain LinkNYC’s kiosks, which offer services such as phone calls, Wi-Fi and device charging. In 2015, payphones began to be phased out with their replacement by high-tech kiosks. According to reports, there are now about 2,000 kiosks in New York.
A city spokesman told reporters “Just as we have transitioned from horses and carts to automobiles, and from automobiles to airplanes, digital evolution has led to a shift from payphones to high-speed Wi-Fi kiosks to meet the demands of our rapidly changing daily communication needs. “.
The latest payphone will be on display at the Museum of the City of New York as part of an exhibition dedicated to life in the metropolis before the computer age.
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