New Wider Roosevelt Island Tram Station Staircase Installed and Ready For Use - Bottleneck At Staircase Should Be Reduced
As reported in this previous post, the Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC) announced:
...Beginning on Tuesday, September 13, 2011, we will begin work renovating the Tram Entrance Steps. Signs are posted indicating the new entrance and exit. This renovation will take approximately 8 days to complete. Work will not begin each day until after the morning rush hour. Please note there will be no interruption of normal Tram Service....Yesterday afternoon the final touches were being put in place for the new Tram Station Staircase
and today the wider staircase was in place ready to be used by Tram passengers.
Here's what the staircase used to look like.
At least now, the bottleneck caused by Tram passengers exiting and entering the station at this point will be reduced.
10 comments :
Hurray! Imagine, it only took one month to make the staircase wide enough for passengers that have been using the tram for 30 years!
Did anyone at all at RIOC out of all those egos and College degrees even think about making it a long wide ramp for everyone to use? For the amount of disabled and elderly that live here on RI, RIOC seems to have no clue how to design bus stops, the amount of bus stops needed here on RI, ,entry ways to the train and tram, and even seating on the tram. A wide ramp up to the Tram from the red bus stop going South would have been a great idea. Where is the disabled group here on the island when it comes to the injured people getting around easier here? The ramp could have a right and left side with a pole down the middle so people could enter from the bus on the left, and exit to a bus on the right and a ramp would have supplied even wheelchaired bound people easy entry. If you are in a wheel chair, you still have to wheel yourself all the way down to the front of the tram and then all the way back up the ramp...why not a ramp on each side for everyone? Who figures these things out for RIOC? There are no sickers in the Tram to suggest letting eldery and disabled to sit down in the few seats on the the tram either...kids and tourist always knock everyone down trying to get a seat on there like it is a ride at Disney World. Why no stickers to sugggest giving up your seat for someone disabled? A few more thousands of dollars just thrown in the wind without careful thought about how to benefit all those that pay to use the island services. Oh, wait a minute, someone said that there are more disabled people in Northtown, so it is not important at the tram right?
I notice that was posted Sept 13, and it said should take eight days to finsh, it is not a month later. hmmmm, eight day, not almost a month later?
OK, I would agree a ramp would make sense (even with the large one on the other side), you should at least think that perhaps building something as simple as a ramp is not really not as simple as it seems. There is an exact pitch/slope, length and other government mandated proportions and dimensions that have to be perfectly followed per the ADA otherwise the owner and construction company is opened to law suits. Perhaps to adhere to this, there is not enough space (or width) to fit the ramp according to spec, or perhaps due to (or in conjunction with) other building codes (closeness to the build/foundation) the ramp just was not feasible/able to be built properly. I am not saying that is true, but it is something to think about before you go off on a half-cocked venomous rant. I also do not understand your strange generalized hate for everyone and thing in Southtown, and what really that has to do with this story.
Anyways, yes, I agree a ramp would be nice, but I myself am just wondering why the stairs at least can not take up the entire width of the space.
I do not hate anyone or anything about southtown at all, you are wrong about that, I am quoting someone at RIOC, they stated that there are more disabled people that live North. That is false, I believe that just as many, if not more disabled people live south on the island.
I'm sure those with a degree thought about it and then said, "Wait, we can piss off Bartonfinck by just making stairs." Yeah, I'm sure that's what happened. Not that there is a metal grate right there that would prevent a long ramp or even the fact that there's already an ADA approved ramp less than 10 feet in distance. You don't give the handicapped much credit. They get around just fine. It's always the non-handicapped that want to talk about what the handicapped need and should have. The RIDA expresses their needs quite well - thank you.
so the stairs are easy and quick for everyone right? People in wheelchairs do not mind wheeling themselves down to the front of the tram and then up a ramp right? By then the tram is loaded and taking off. Put a ramp right where the red bus pulls up to the entrance where the stairs are was my point, having a ramp up and down from the tram is the better idea, and again, where are the stickers inside the tram to allow handicapped and elderly to sit first? That should have been thought about as well. Where is the bus stops at the new park for the elderly and handicapped to be able to take the bus to the new park. Whey are there only 2 bus stops in Southtown? Why do the disabled and eldery in buildings 455 and 475 have to some how manage to get to the train and train in the rain and snow, and whey is there not a bus stop at 455 and 475 main street? Why have the bus stops not been measured out and spaced even and fairly to all buildings on this island? Why does the RIDA not care about the disabled people living in the 5 buildings in Southtown? The 2 buses that run on this 2 mile long island should be thought of as community buses, but it seems for years they have been shuttle buses for northtowners to get to the tram and train.
RIDA only seems to care about the buildings they live in, not the rest of the island. That is my point.
Ah, I apologize then, I did not realize you were quoting/being satirical. I still stand by the ramp being a good idea though, but perhaps just not possible due to regulations.
I agree with most of your latest blog regarding RIOC's
gradual elimination of nature and wildlife on Roosevelt
Island; and feel that RIOC leans towards "development"
above everything else - preferably involving new fads
such as info by smart phones, parking spots checked electronically and motorized patrols by PSD. They
concentrate on the future and postpone planning for the past (but do not plan for add'l kindergartens/schools until after the children are borne).
what will they do with us humans and our children if they tire of us and want us out of the way?
how you treat a defenseless animal is how you would treat a child, or your friend.
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