Documenting payphones from around the world

The rise of in popularity of cell phones has resulted in declining numbers of pay phones worldwide, and Mark Thomas’ Payphone Project has been documenting this – along with an impressive visual database of diverse payphones from around the world – since the mid 1990s.

Originally intended to “promote random contacts between strangers,” the Payphone Project has morphed into depository of stories and photos of public payphones from around the world, everywhere from Africa to Antarctica.

Though the numbers are fading, Mark doesn’t see the payphone becoming extinct.

“There will always be a segment of the population that can not afford private phone service, and which relies on public telephony as a point of contact with the world.”

If you have a story or photo of a payphone not featured on the site, you can email submissions to Mark.

[via BoingBoing]