RIOC negligence is a recurring theme here, but the latest in sleepwalking may take the cake. It has Roosevelt Islanders scratching their heads… How detached from reality on the ground can they be?
By David Stone
The Roosevelt Island Daily News
RIOC Negligence and the Partial Tram Shutdown
While we scrambled to put together the best guide for dealing with Tram reductions in service, our readers called out RIOC negligence. We missed it until the emails unsettled a Sunday dedicated to lazy footwall watching. The state agency that never gets it wrong outdid us on lazy, or maybe, it’s just indifference or asleep at the wheel…
Although RIOC repeated, to the same audience, a slapdash advisory about the shutdown, they never stretched beyond their email list. That covers only a tiny fraction of residents. For all the others, nothing. No kiosk postings. No Red Bus notices. And most tellingly, not a word at either Tram Plaza, even though Leitner-Poma put up fences – without instructions – on Roosevelt Island.
We asked around. Maybe we missed something.
“Has anyone seen any notice about the Tram shutdown or shuttle service, other than in the flakey advisory?” we asked.
“Nothing,” said one well-traveled Roosevelt Islander.
A “Very Disappointed Long-Timer” was less generous:
“Sorry, no. Nothing about anything anywhere. Nothing on Red Buses. Nothing on / in Bus Stops. Nothing on kiosks. These folks AGAIN deserve public shaming for failing the community — especially the folks for whom the Tram is their primary means of travel.”
For some, the true, penetrating question is, How long will Albany force us to put up with this mess? We pay for most of it but get this RIOC negligence in return.
If you’re anywhere near Blackwell House, knock on the door. Ask whoever answers to wake up president/CEO Shelton J Haynes from his Rip Van Winkle length slumber. It’s a lot to ask, but maybe he can get his well-paid, 4-member Communications Team to, well… you know, communicate.
More from the Roosevelt Island Daily
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- Northern Boulevard Safety Concerns Spark Calls for Major RedesignNorthern Boulevard safety concerns have led community members and officials in Queens to demand a comprehensive redesign, citing unsafe conditions and a need for urgent action.
- Three New Schools Open in Western Queens Amid Ongoing Classroom OvercrowdingThree new schools have opened in Western Queens, giving some relief in classroom overcrowding, but families still face capacity challenges and tough implementation issues this fall.
- Certified 9/11-Related Cancer Cases Double at Northwell HealthNorthwell Health has seen a sharp increase as certified 9/11-related cancer cases double, transforming care for survivors and responders in the New York region.
- Long-Term Health Effects Linked to 9/11: 25 Years LaterThe 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks brings renewed focus to long-term health effects linked to 9/11, with ongoing needs for survivors, first responders, and affected communities.
What the Promenade Remembers
The light on the East River in the early morning is different from the light anywhere else on the Island. It comes in low and sideways, catching the water in long, uneven flashes. On certain days it makes the promenade feel less like a walkway and more like a corridor someone once meant to finish but never quite did. When I was younger I found the suggestion to stop and look at it faintly ridiculous.
