Local kids can dial Ho Ho Ho (46 46 46) from any local payphone for a direct line to Santa this Christmas, but Aura-based little ones are in for a bit of a hike.
There are no public phones in Aura and the humble phone booth is becoming more difficult to find right across the 4551 postcode, with only 10 payphones on the map from Nirimba through to Pelican Waters and Currimundi.
A Baringa resident would need to travel 3km in a straight line to access their nearest phone booth in either Little Mountain or Golden Beach.
Yet the distance apparently meets Telstra’s Universal Service Obligation to “ensure payphones are reasonably accessible to all people in Australia, no matter where they live or conduct business”.
According to a Stockland spokesperson they are yet to be contacted by Telstra to install public payphones within the Aura community, but suggest residents reach out to Telstra to determine any future or planned locations of their public payphones.
Telstra is “open to public consultation on the location of payphones” and those who wish to request one for their area can call Telstra on 1800 011 433 or in writing to Telstra Payphone Siting Manager, Locked Bag 4850, Melbourne Vic 3001.
But if greater Caloundra parents are willing to get the kids to their nearest booth, kids of all ages can phone Santa for free from 20 November until Christmas Eve by dialling 46 46 46 from any payphone.
Last year over half a million calls were made to Santa from payphones across Australia – a cost-free way for kids to chat one-on-one with Santa.
With just one dial, they can ask Santa anything, from what the reindeer are snacking on to how chilly it is at the North Pole.
Payphone locations across the 4551 are:
11 Pierce Avenue, Little Mountain
49 Nelson Street, Golden Beach
20 West Terrace, Caloundra
6 Centaur Street, Caloundra
6 Esplanade, Bulcock Beach
1 Central Park, Caloundra
39 South Ulm Street, Moffat Beach
56 Coolum Street, Dicky Beach
32 Buderim Street, Battery Hill
695 Nicklin Way, Currimundi
Or check the map here: www.telstra.com.au/find-us?search=payphone.
The lack of payphone access adds to the lukewarm service that many Aura locals experience with the Telstra network.
New Aura resident Kirk Edwards said he’d never been too worried about phone booth access before moving to the area.
“It’s something you don’t really think about until you need one, I never thought about it once when we were looking to buy here or after we moved until I had some patchy mobile service and a blackout where my phone wouldn’t work at all.
“I thought, bloody hell, where’s the nearest phone box, and there wasn’t one,” he said.
This follows a number of local residents including Vinoy Dafin venting their frustrations earlier in the year when Telstra mobile services were affected during a power outage.
“The absence of mobile connectivity, particularly data service backup, during power outages by Telstra, the largest telecom operator, is a significant cause for concern,” he said.
