Traders and council campaign about “filthy and broken” phone boxes in Eastbourne

There are several of the boxes along Terminus Road with large advertising boards on the back.

But a campaign is now underway to “shame BT into action” because they are becoming a “blot on the landscape”.

Eastbourne council leader David Tutt said, “Over the past few years a considerable effort has been made to improve Eastbourne’s town centre. The £85m investment in The Beacon by Legal and General, complemented by the improvements

by East Sussex County Council with a financial contribution from the borough council to improve roads and pavements and the management of the area by the Chamber of Commerce, all of which are supported by MP Stephen Lloyd, are beginning to make a real difference.

“Given all of this good work it is a great shame that one organisation, BT is not only failing to support improvement initiatives but is bringing the area down. Every one of their payphones are filthy dirty despite BT’s promises to clean them. Most have broken handsets and are clearly out of action. This raises the question of why they are there, other than to raise income for BT from the adverts on them.

“BT has legislative powers to install payphones but the time has come for Eastbourne to shame them into action, either install new phones and keep them clean or remove them completely.”

Traders have been complaining about the anti social behaviour the phone boxes seem to attract with shopkeepers saying people are using them to deal drugs or they are being used as toilets.

The Herald is waiting for BT to comment.