It’s no surprise that the public payphone is a declining species. The SF Chronicle gathered some statistics on the numbers in the Bay Area. To break even, a phone needs to generate at least 500 calls a month. People with low incomes often depend on pay phones, and they likely live in neighborhoods where phones have been removed because of maintenance costs and ordinances to discourage drug dealing. The state provides a subsidy to encourage pay phones in areas of great need, but few people are aware of the program and PacBell claims the subsidy doesn’t cover costs. Phone cards are becoming popular, but a phone is still needed to use them. A store in the Mission District offers free use of a phone if customers purchase phone cards there. Clocks behind the counter set to the time in various countries reflect the immigrant population who make use of this service.