THE phones in Uki are ringing off the hook.

And the reason is Telstra switched on its mobile phone tower in the village last Friday.

Owners of the Uki Newsagency Lyn and Peter Messing said the new phone signal had come as quite a surprise to many residents.

"Most people are unaware it was happening," Mrs Messing said.

However, she said many people would welcome being able to receive Telstra signal because the town's public phones were often out of service.

She said phone reception was very important for safety and security in rural areas.

"You are in an area with properties, they need to be able to ring somebody if something goes wrong," she said.

Having the Telstra mobile phone signal would also be good for the tourists who visit the village because the town's public phones were often out of service, she said.

"We need all the help we can get at the moment," she said.

Tourism has been on the decline since the destination pub, The Mount Warning Hotel, burned down in February.

In addition, other tourist attractions are also closed, including Mt Warning National Park, due to storm damage; and Clarrie Hall Dam, due to its use as the set of a feature film.

Optus installed a tower in Uki about 12 months ago.