Hours after our report on alarming negligence in the work, a Tram maintenance project, including a partial shutdown, was announced a week after it began. If you depend on the Tram, prepare for weeks of major disruptions.
by David Stone
The Roosevelt Island Daily News
Tram Maintenance With a Partial, Two-Week Shutdown
We don’t know what woke up the giant ground sloth, but RIOC drew out its laggardly communications beast just in time to break for lunch on Friday.
“Please be advised that due to critical and necessary tram work beginning Sunday, June 12th, 2022, until approximately Sunday, June 26th, 2022, the South Tram Cabin will be out of service. The North Cabin will remain in service,” an emailed advisory said.
That’s a big deal because, with tourist season in full swing, Tram use has been heavy. Cutting service by 50% promises long delays. Potential jams are exacerbated by RIOC’s failure to post any notices in either Tram Plaza, although the work started on Monday.
The state agency where countless fumbles and intense secrecy produced a sense of chaos has, it seems, done it again.
Here we go again…
“Words fail me,” one longtime resident said after seeing the frustrating RIOC Advisory.
“Once again, RIOC and POMA (Operators of the Tram) can’t get their acts together,” she said.
The abruptness and lack of advance notice, also, concerned others. RIOC gave residents less than two days warning about the shutdown, although they certainly knew about it for weeks.
At least part of that was predictable after President/CEO Shelton J. Haynes oversaw the clearing out of his entire Communications Team.
“What happens on the weekend, when tourism is at its highest and residents already fight their way onto a single cabin?”
RIOC was silent on that issue.
Tram Shutdown alternatives: RIOC’s “Plan”
“To accommodate this disruption, RIOC will be running a shuttle bus Mondays through Fridays from 3PM to 8PM, between the Roosevelt Island Tramway and the Tram Station at 60th St and 2nd Ave in Manhattan.
Boarding Locations/Routes:
- Roosevelt Island to Manhattan: board at the R.I. Tram Station. Shuttle will make all northbound local stops to Capobianco Field (Opposite PS/IS 217)
- Manhattan to R.I.: board at the southwest side of 2nd Avenue, between 58th & 59th Street. Shuttle will make all southbound local stops (beginning at 591 Main Street) to the Tram station.
- Frequency: departing on the half hour, traffic depending.
- Last Trip- Manhattan to R.I.: 8:30 PM Roosevelt Island to Manhattan: 8:00 PM
“We encourage riders to plan accordingly and anticipate increased wait times for both the Tram and Red Bus shuttle. Please also consider alternate transportation options such as the F-train subway, ferry or Q102 bus.”
In short, with no explanation, RIOC left one and all without alternative resources on busy weekends, but worse yet…
“No attempt to even try to accommodate folks with disabilities or other challenges with at least one or two Red Bus shuttles in the morning?”
Needless to say, any subway disruption, especially in the morning, means transportation misery for anyone heading off to work or school, etc., as RIOC cannot be counted on for help.
These are the sorts of things that have endeared RIOC and its Albany overseers to Roosevelt Islanders for years.
What You Can Do
If you aren’t crazy about the subway – like many of us – you have a few limited options.
First and best is the Q102 bus. When it leaves Roosevelt Island, it’s only a 5 or 10 minute ride to Queens Plaza where transfers into Manhattan await as well as multiple subway line connections.
If your destination is Midtown or Wall Street, NYC Ferry can be a solid choice. The 34th Street Landing connects to buses, including free shuttles.
But realistically, although it’s late, your best step may be sounding off at RIOC, our elected officials and the governor’s office early and often. There’s always a chance that enough noise can prick them into providing an acceptable level of the services they are obliged to provide.
A few bucks toward our expenses is always appreciated.
more from the roosevelt island daily news
- Queens Public Library Ransomware Attack: Digital Services Still DisruptedThe Queens Public Library ransomware attack continues to disrupt public computers, digital books and online services, with no confirmed restoration date.
- A new RIOC appeals officer denied records on how its general counsel was hiredA different RIOC appeals officer denied records on how RIOC hired general counsel Lance Polivy. RIOC’s internal deliberations on the hire stay withheld.
- Monday’s PSD blotter: two hospital transports, two disputesRIOC’s Nov. 9 PSD blotter lists 14 incidents, including four aided calls with two hospital transports and a verbal dispute at 750 Main Street that drew FDNY.
- Flushing Spa Murder: Man Charged After Woman Found Stabbed to DeathFlushing spa murder investigation leads to a murder charge against a 54-year-old man after a woman was found fatally stabbed in a Queens storefront.
- Sunday’s blotter: four medical calls, three non-criminal investigationsRIOC’s Nov. 8 PSD blotter lists 19 incidents, including four aided calls (two hospital transports) and three Investigation Non-Criminal entries at 465, 580 and 546 Main Street.
Who Does This?
At the June 18 meeting of the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation’s Real Estate Development Advisory Committee, President and Chief Executive Officer B.J. Jones acknowledged that there had been no progress finding a tenant for the long-discussed medical space on Main Street. Hudson/Related Realty LLC had told him that filling the space, along with other vacant storefronts, was proving more difficult than expected.
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