Though few of us lament the decline of the public phone box in Ireland, the traditional red one over in London is as iconic to the city as the buses. And now a group of engineers is finding a use for the derelict boxes dotted around the city.

The Solarbox project wants to help keep your smartphone’s battery from dying by re-purposing the red boxes into neon green monoliths of reusable and renewable energy – and turn them into solar-powered quick-charging stations.

Solarbox’s engineers have taken the forgotten relics of a pre-mobile time and installed 150-watt solar panels, iPhone and mini/micro-USB chargers, and opened the doors to the public.

The Solarbox boffins say that beleaguered batteries will get a 20% boost from a 12-minute visit – though this is dependent on the make and model of the charging device, and what apps it’s running in the background.

Solarbox is free to use, with financial support being offered to the project through advertising within the boxes while you wait - a reinforced iPad plays the adverts for you to watch while raising your phone from the dead.

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The boxes are locked up every evening to limit the opportunities for vandals to destroy them, but otherwise operate from 05.30 to 23.30, 365 days a year.

Entrepreneurs Kirsty Kenny and Harold Craston devised the project, and earned second place in the London Mayor’s Low Carbon Entrepreneur of the Year Award. You can see the pair explain the project in this video:

While only six boxes on the Tottenham Court Road are currently in use, Londoners can expect at least another six in early 2015. Irish people, at least for now, need to continue rationing our Candy Crush-ing and turn down the screen brightness.