Where Should The Roosevelt Island Red Bus Stop To Pick Up And Drop Off Passengers At The New Tram - Here's The Latest Proposal From RIOC

Now that the fun and excitement over the Roosevelt Island/Park Slope first round battle for the Curbed Neighborhood Of The Year is over, it's back to daily life on Roosevelt Island and issues such as the Red Bus and Tram Operations.

 Tram Riders Running For Red Bus On South Side Of Street

A reader of Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC) President Leslie Torres recent Report To The Community wrote:

Hey Leslie -- It is not all lollipops and roses.

Please get the Red bus to pick up and discharge passengers at the Tram ON THE SAME SIDE OF THE STREET AS THE TRAM after 7 am. Anything less is an accident waiting to happen, and it is cruel to our elderly and disabled neighborsn not to mention many of our youngsters who go to school in Manhattan and do not excercise any precaution when crossing the street.

And then get a bus shelter up there too. And move the bench from the outer edge of the station to the more protected area where it used to be.

Common sense seems to have gone out the window with the re-opening of the Tram. Running one cabin during the day ? Pretending no one will notice ?

And please remind the Red bus drivers to use their radios and talk to each other so we can prevent a repeat of the 25-minute wait this past Friday at the Across-the-street from the Tram bus stop in 20 degree weather...

Another suggested:

The easiest way to make the crossing of the street safer would be to make it a one-way, bus-only lane. Paint a crosswalk sign on the street and we are done. Any other complains are just because of laziness or rain-allergies.

And comments from other posts:

 Most of the passengers would prefer "it (the bus) goes a bit around the round-about and backs up into the spot on the south side" . It would be preferable to the haul from the north end of the road most of the time and winter is coming

And:

 Crossing a street is now a "haul"? I am speechless. What is wrong with us if we don't even want to walk a few steps anymore? I agree that the crossing should be made safer: buses only, a cross walk, or even maybe make the street narrower or build a passenger loading bay. But complaining that walking 10 more steps is unacceptable is just silly.

Oh, maybe the bus fare should be bumped up to a dollar. Maybe that will refocus the complains.

One more:

The majority of RIers don't care much if the bus stops on the north or the south side of the street. They all understand that walking a couple more steps is not going to kill them.

I have talked to many people who take the bus and the only thing that pisses everybody off is the bus not being in sync with the tram right now.

 This issue was raised and discussed during the RIOC Board of Directors December 9 Operations Committee meeting. The discussion was very interesting and sometimes quite heated. In the past, I would recommend that you listen to the discussion yourselves on the audio web cast but it appears that only the first 27 minutes of the more that 2 1/2 hour meeting is available. The Red Bus and Tram Operations discussion took place later in the meeting and is not included in the audio web cast.

This is what happened. RIOC's VP of Operations Fernando Martinez presented a review of the first week of Red Bus and Tram operations following the return to service of the new Tram System.

The RIOC Directors present as well as RIRA President Matt Katz made many of the point referred to by the readers above.  In response, Mr. Martinez proposed the following Red Bus route change which will enable the Red Bus to drop off and pick up passengers at the Tram on the south side of the street so that Red Bus passengers will not have to cross into traffic. (Click On The Image To Enlarge)

Here's the Roosevelt Island Tram Station Plaza East/West Cross Street from above.

The proposed plan is that the Red Bus, instead of turning right as it currently does to drop off riders on the north side of the East/West Road (pictured at top), will go around the turnaround heading left

and drop off/pick up riders on the Tram Station Side of the street

in the spot where the Tram workers now park their cars near the construction trailers.

The Red Bus will then make a right on East Channel Road (facing Queens) heading towards Sportspark,

make another right at the South Side of Sportspark to the West Channel Road (facing Manhattan) and head north to resume it's route on Main Street towards the subway station. Before it gets to the Subway Station, the Red Bus will also stop next to the Visitors Center Kiosk.

Several RIOC Board Directors raised concerns to this new Tram Station Red Bus Stop proposal citing the inaccessibility of these nearby steps to the Tram Station

and the distance to the existing ramp for elderly and disabled

One Board Director asked if a canopy similar to the one that leads from the South Side of the Tram Station to the Tennis Club could be placed at the proposed bus stop to protect riders from bad weather.

Another Director asked if the Red Bus could just back up a bit from the new stop and then go around the turnaround as it did before the old Tram went out of service. The Director added that if necessary, a curb cut in the sidewalk adjacent to Firefighter's Field could be done.

Mr. Martinez responded that he did not think it was possible for the Red Bus to safely make the Tram Turnaround from the proposed new Red Bus Stop. Mr. Martinez did say that an additional ramp could be installed by the Tram Station Staircase but that would have to wait until spring when the weather get's warmer to mix concrete. In the meantime, Mr. Martinez promised that a new temporary bus shelter will be installed at the current Tram Station Stop.

Guess what? A reader sent in this comment earlier today:

FYI: RIOC has just installed a passenger shelter for the bus stop across the street from the tram.

And here it is.

New Temporary Bus Shelter

Remember this is just a proposal right now and not the definite new route. So, what do you think of the new proposed Tram Bus Stop and Route?

Another issue with the Red Bus Stop occurs at the Subway Station. Will have more on that later.