Roosevelt Island Tram Operator Leitner Poma Explains Reason For Service Interruptions Last Week - RIOC 6 Month Extension Of Leitner Poma Roosevelt Island Tram Operating Agreement

During this past weekend there were several disruptions in Roosevelt Island Tram service including that described in this December 19 Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC) Advisory:

Due to mechanical servicing on the Southbound cabin, one Tram cabin will be in operation. No disruption to normal service is anticipated. Thank you for your patience during this necessary work.

The Roosevelt Island Twitterverse also reported on December 19:

Roosevelt Island tram appears to be stuck. #rooseveltisland pic.twitter.com/T2UsyBeA9c

— Sean O'Siadhail (@filesean) December 19, 2015

Roosevelt Island Tram Operator Poma Leitner's Armando Cordova explains what happened:

We would like to share the following information with Roosevelt Island residents regarding last week tram delays.

At this time we are conducting our lubrication maintenance on our wire ropes.

This maintenance provides our ropes with the necessary protection against corrosion and friction, as a result of this lubrication some of the rubber liner material soften and becomes in contact with the monitoring switch, causing the tram electronic monitoring system to trigger a stop. In order to clear this stop we need to physically access the bullwheel area, and manually re-set the monitoring switch which signal is interfering with the tram operation. Fortunately at this time the rubber material exfoliation is subsiding and we’re gradually resuming normal service.

Although these enhanced safety measures for this general maintenance program has caused some interruptions, the safety precautions taken assures a reliable and trustworthy tram operation.

UPDATE 5:45 PM - The Roosevelt Island Tram operating agreement with Leitner-Poma expired earlier this month. During the December 3 RIOC Board meeting (video web cast here), the RIOC Directors agreed to extend the Leitner-Poma Roosevelt Island Tram operating agreement for up to 6 months. Here's the memo from RIOC Staff in support of a temporary extension of the Poma-Leitner Roosevelt Island Tram operating agreement:

The Operating Agreement with Leitner-Poma expires this week. RIOC has not yet finalized the RFP for the next contract term as there are significant changes from the last RFP which included both design and operations elements. RIOC intends to complete the RFP this winter. Accordingly, it is necessary to extend the current agreement for a maximum of six months.

The extension will provide for monthly payments of $299,527 which covers operating costs and normal maintenance.

The manufacturer’s warranties have expired; major unpredictable breakdowns and major maintenance requirements are, therefore, excluded from the monthly fee. All other terms and conditions of the contract between the parties remain in full force and effect.

Since RIOC has been satisfied with the services of Leitner-Poma, we recommend approval of this extension.

Here's the December 3 RIOC Board discussion of 6 month temporary extension of agreement for Leitner-Poma to operate the Roosevelt Island Tram during which time RIOC will issue a Tram Operator Request For Proposals.