Translation: The Public Telephone

The public telephone (payphone) is a species threatened with extinction (an endangered species). There are fewer and fewer on the streets and many of those that have survived only work with a prepaid card (perhaps because it costs too much to send someone to collect the coins). Should we be sorry about their disappearance? We can say that those who own a mobile/cell phone no longer need a landline in public places. Indeed/in fact, hardly anyone would stay outside in the cold when they can sit comfortably in a bar, have a drink and contact friends and relatives by pressing just one button/a single button without even having to remember the number. The United Kingdom, though, has a particular reason to regret the loss of the public telephone. For nearly/almost a century, the traditional red phone box has been part of the country’s image, along with the red buses and black taxis, icons that are now gradually being replaced by more modern models.