Citing increased use of cell phones, Verizon ups pay phone toll to 50 cents

BANGOR – It now is going to cost more to phone home from a Verizon pay phone.

Starting Thursday, Verizon began raising the toll it charges for a person to make a local call from any of the company’s 5,400 pay phones statewide. The new rate is 50 cents, up 43 percent from the previous rate of 35 cents. Changing all the pay phones statewide may take several months.

Verizon also will be increasing the price of local directory assistance calls from pay phones to 50 cents from 35 cents.

The 50-cent rate is “what the market determined to be a fair price,” said Verizon spokesman Peter Reilly. “Customers will perceive this to be a fair value to deliver those local calls where people can speak for an undeterminable amount of time.”

With the rate increase, there will not be a limit on how long people talk. Verizon is eliminating timed calling, in which callers would pay 35 cents for a few minutes and then have to deposit more money into the pay phone if they wanted to continue with the call.

Increased use of cell phones in the last 21/2 years has decreased the number of pay phone calls by 23 percent, according to Reilly.

Verizon last increased tolls -from 25 cents to 35 cents – 21/2 years ago. But Reilly said that price hike had little to do with the decreased use of pay phones.

“Market analysis shows it was particularly wireless use,” he said. “It’s the widespread use and popularity of cell phones that’s eating into our marketplace.”

But it still costs money to maintain such a broad network of pay phones for people to use when they need them, and Verizon had to raise the toll to keep the operation profitable, he said.

“Without the rate increase, the widespread availability of pay phones would be threatened,” said Reilly, adding that Verizon first undertook some cost-cutting measures before determining that it needed to raise prices. “We have to price services to maintain the profitability of those services.”

At the Bangor Mall on Thursday afternoon, shoppers were not pleased to hear that the pay phone charge had gone up.

Arnold and Kathy Perry of Medway called the rate increase “a bit much.” Perry said he would not pay 50 cents to use a pay phone.

“I’d go buy a cell phone first,” he said.

“Sure,” agreed Mrs. Perry. “If it’s cheaper.”

Heidie Fournier of Old Town said she is sold on cell phones instead of pay phones.

“I have a cell phone now,” Fournier said. “I pay $10 a month for it. Why would I spend 50 cents on a phone call? Can you believe that?”

At one Verizon pay phone, Dick Schott of Gettysburg, Pa., was looking up a phone number while his wife, Luz, was making a call.

Although they disliked paying 50 cents to use the phone, Schott said they needed to make the call.

“We’re not from here and she’s trying to get her cell phone fixed,” he said.

When asked which cell phone company they use, he answered, “Verizon.”