Cutting services for Red Buses was unheard of just a few years ago. What a difference a few years can make… Now, the battle is about retaining any services at all.
by David Stone
The Roosevelt Island Daily News
Cutting Services for Red Buses
Yesterday, RIOC announced reductions in red bus services designed to preserve the single vehicle still in service. The ideal fleet for meeting all schedules is five, but RIOC is down to one. Keeping that running requires treating it with caution.
- Except for two movie nights, Red Buses will stop operating south of the Tram Plaza.
- The Octagon Express and Shoppers Buses are canceled.
- RIOC will rest the one bus for an hour for fueling and maintenance from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.
- Services will end at 1:00 a.m. instead of 2:00 a.m. This mirrors Q102 schedules.
These are sensible, if unpleasant steps, taken reluctantly.
The Cause
The Haynes administration gets criticized for a lot of things. Some issues, like neglecting the bus fleet, are not visible until they are. One of RIOC’s best ever managers, Cy Opperman, kept buses repaired and running well beyond expectations. He kept drivers in the seats, but he couldn’t produce miracles, just near miracles.
As Red Buses aged out during his four plus years at the helm, RIOC CEO Shelton J. Haynes did not order a single new bus. He spent a lot of cash on other things. This included his and loyalists’ compensation. However, he spent nothing on new buses. His board, chaired by Hochul suck-up RuthAnne Visnauskas, was even less effective.
With Haynes sidelined with a suspension over accusations of creating a hostile work environment and more, interim leadership stepped up.
Acting COO Mary Cunneen pitched two new buses to the board right away. The price? Nearly $800,000 each. Transportation needed more than that. The whole fleet needs replacing. A money squeeze caused by endless lawsuits and investigations left the fiscal cupboard nearly bare. Losses from Tram, bus and Sportspark operations also contributed to the financial strain.
Given the circumstances, resting old #10 makes sense….
But….
But RIOC has not seriously considered alternatives.
After years of fiscal mismanagement, its cash position is perilous. It is nearly $7 million lower than it was just two years ago. Money is tight, but imagination should not be.
Keep in mind that RIOC watches untold tens of thousands bleed out of financially nonviable Sportspark every month. Even more money is lost with the risk-filled Tram. So, it can find a way to put up some cash for bus alternatives.
To date, the only official option is leased buses. These are like the ones now in use , but they cost over $20,000 per month. RIOC does not have cash enough for that, but why not scale down alternatives?
Temporary buses needn’t be 24/7 adoptions. Better servicing in just rush hours would help and provide a fall back should the single surviving Red Bus fail. Other considerations involve smaller buses like the one The Octagon uses. Other buses ferry Roosevelt Islanders across to Memorial Sloan Kettering every weekday. Why not learn from good examples?
In short, RIOC is doing a masterful job keeping their limited fleet serving the Island. They can and should do more. Starting soon.
AVAC Is Working. The Model Is What’s Aging.
Roosevelt Island’s AVAC system is often discussed as if it were either a miracle or a menace. In truth, it is neither. It is functioning infrastructure that has reached a point in its lifecycle where how it is maintained matters as much as whether it exists at all.
