Bolton town centre phone boxes to be turned into communication hubs

Plans have been put forward to install five communication hubs across the town centre equipped with defibrillators.

JCDecaux, the applicant behind the plans, have put plans forward for the installation of five multi-functional communication hubs at 67 Deansgate junction to Oxford Street, 4-6 Oxford Street, 6 Newport Street, 47 Newport Street and the Bolton Bus Interchange.

The hubs - supported by Greater Manchester Police - come after the company purchased a telephone company called Infocus Networks in 2018 and with it a network of old-style enclosed call boxes.

How the proposed units should look (Image: JCDecaux)

Over the last few years, they have been working to  replace call boxes with modern multifunctional Hub units, of which there are now 160 in the UK.

The scheme has been developed through Andy Burnham’s office to create a network of communication hubs with accessible defibrillators across the nine Greater Manchester boroughs, with the project also driven by the mayor’s ‘heart-safe’ campaign with the aim of extending the provision of defibrillators.

The plans state that the hubs will offer a range of services including free ultrafast Wi-Fi, free phone calls to landlines and charities, a defibrillator, wayfinding, device charging, rapid connection to emergency services, public messaging capabilities, access to council services, and a platform for other technologies.

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Each hub also has an integrated touch screen designed for public phone use, and a range of other android compatible functions to enable users to access the internet and council webpages and wayfinding around the city.

Within the plans, Inspector O’Connor for Greater Manchester Police shared a comment about the success of the hubs in Manchester City Centre.

Proposed unit in the town centre (Image: JCDecaux)

He said: “GMP has used the digital screens on JCDecaux’s Communication hubs to promote a wide range of key public messaging including online reporting, safety in the night-time economy, counter-terrorism prevention, and crime-prevention strategies.

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“The hubs have allowed us to reach a large number of the public passing the screens and our messaging has been received positively by the public.

“We have also been able to use the screens to support dedicated action days in specific locations.

“I believe this is a positive initiative, contributing to safety within Manchester City Centre.”

The advertisement screens will be in operation between 6am and 11.59pm and the applicants are also in partnership with the Community Heartbeat Trust with the installation of defibrillators.

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