A GROWTH in the number of mobile phones is one of the reasons blamed by operator BT for its proposal to remove 19 phone boxes from across the Stroud district.

Phone boxes on the BT blacklist include kiosks in School Road, May Lane and Upper Poole Road in Dursley, the sole phone box in Wortley, Wotton-under-Edge, one in Heathfield, Alkington and one in Lower Wick.

In announcing plans to cut the number of boxes across Gloucestershire, BT has insisted that it will continue to provide a comprehensive payphone service.

The company intends to cut 141 boxes throughout the county, maintaining 995 kiosks including 145 loss-making phone boxes.

Across the Stroud district the 166 kiosks will be reduced to 147, with 30 loss-making boxes being retained.

Of the 75,000 BT phone boxes in Great Britain, only 29,000 are profitable, 19,000 just break even and 27,000 lose money.

BT's nation-wide review of phone boxes began in April 2002 and will be completed by the end of 2005. The company is consulting with district, parish and town councils about plans to remove a number of payphones which it believes are no longer needed. It is also placing notices in those kiosks.

Director of BT Payphones Paul Hendron said the company recognises that people have concerns about its plans to reduce the number of payphones.

"But I would like to reassure them that BT is still committed to the service, particularly for the communities who need us most," he added. "We will manage the changes sensitively through extensive consultation with local representatives."

BT claims the increase in mobile phone ownership in particular has led to a complete culture change in communication. The number of calls made from BT payphones have almost halved in the last three years and revenue dropped by more than 40 percent.

Only one percent of homes does not have access to either a fixed line or a mobile phone. Ninety three per cent have a fixed line, 79 per cent a fixed and mobile phone and six per cent have a mobile phone only.

Mr Hendron added: "BT is proud of its payphone network and we intend to protect it for the future, but the payphones' division has to stand on its own feet. "Getting the balance between commercial pressures and retaining loss-making payphones that provide an essential service is difficult, but we believe we are getting it right."

Examples of new activities devised to help generate revenue and protect the phone box revenue include:

* The transformation of more than 1,500 payphones into internet kiosks, opening up access to the internet, email, text messaging and even video and picture e-mail.

* The adaptation of many phone boxes to include new services including one fitted with a cash machine and a payphone.

* The installation of new BT Openzone Wi-Fi access points in broadband enabled payphones to bring wireless broadband to the streets of Britain. Subscribers can connect to the internet or their office intranet using a Wi-Fi enabled laptop or PDA.

Other initiatives include selling advertising space on the inside and outside of phone boxes and on the screens of internet terminals.