Roosevelt Island Tram Cabin Swinging Wildly While Suspended In Air Again Today, "Everyone Super Scared" Reports Resident - NYC Council Member Julie Menin Asks RIOC President To Review Incidents, RIOC President Replies "No Imminent Threat To The Health And Safety Of Our Passengers"
... A Tipster reported that last night about 8 PM the The Roosevelt Island tram cabin was rocking and shaking back and forth on it's way from Manhattan over the East River as it approached the Roosevelt Island station before safely landing. The Tipster did not know if it had anything to do with the Tram being out of service this morning....
Also, on October 20, the Tram cabin was swinging again.
This afternoon, a Roosevelt Island resident sent me this text message.
Everyone super scared. It shook for a few minutes, maybe two? But very hard back and forth.During the October 19, 2023 Community Board 8 Roosevelt Island Committee zoom meeting, Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC) Communications Director Bryant Daniels addressed the issue of the swaying Tram Cabins. According to Mr Daniels:
... during regular tram operations we can periodically get stops that might occur when the tram safety systems are sort of triggered for whatever reason. They tend to be short in time span and what ends up happening is, I just want to check my notes to make sure I'm getting this correctly, what happens is a trigger could happen. A stop may occur, the tram cabin may sway a bit, but it's a controlled and safe reaction that's inherent to the Tram system design and it's not indicative of an unsafe situation...
Here's the full statement by Mr Daniels.
Earlier today, Roosevelt Island's NYC Council Member Julie Menin sent a letter to RIOC President Shelton Haynes expressing concern about these recent Tram shaking back and forth incidents. Ms Menin shares the letter.
Dear President and CEO Haynes,
I am writing to express my concerns about the safety of the Roosevelt Island Tram. On October 20th, a passenger suffered from dizziness and headaches because of the tram cabin shaking back and forth in an excessive manner. On the same day, another passenger shared a video on social media of the tram cabin swinging while suspended in the air.
Roosevelt Island residents heavily rely on the Roosevelt Island Tram to access jobs, services, and entertainment in Manhattan and to access public transportatioN. The tram is even more vital now, as the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) conducts work on the 63rd Street Line, which limits subway service to the island. In addition, the tram allows thousands of tourists to visit the island to view the Manhattan skyline, enjoy the expansive green spaces, and make use of the multitude of amenities on the island.
I urge the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation to review these recent incidents and all safety concerns addressed. It is critical that the safety and wellbeing of those visiting and living in Roosevelt Island is ensured by having the tram properly maintained. It should also have built-in redundancies and safeguards to protect against unexpected mechanical breakdowns and external conditions.
Mr Haynes responded today to Ms Menin. According to Mr Haynes:
Dear Honorable New York City Councilmember Menin,I appreciate your concerns regarding the safety of the Roosevelt Island Tram. Your feedback is invaluable to us, and I want to assure you that we take the safety of our passengers very seriously.
We are aware of a video circulating on social media of the tram cabin swaying while suspended in the air. However, our constituent service department has not received any inquiries. After learning of the incident, we have been meeting with our vendor, Leiner POMA, to clarify this. Allow me to address these concerns and provide some insight into the situation.
The POMA Management team stated, “This tram undergoes very frequent inspections by the state to ensure code compliance, as well as many third-party inspections to ensure the highest of passenger safety. The Roosevelt Island Tramway has an excellent track record with most months reporting a 100% availability record, with overall availability at over 99.93% since the 2010 replacement. No injuries have been reported as a result of a tram malfunction to date. We take pride in this amazing machine and can assure you that the tram responded appropriately.”
Additionally, POMA informed RIOC that the issues you mentioned relate to a communications system message that can appear randomly and requires an employee to confirm the message. When this message appears and awaits acknowledgment from an employee, the Tram will stop, causing it to sway if it is already in operation.
They have emphasized that there is no imminent threat to the health and safety of our passengers. We are actively working with POMA, to address the communication systems messaging issue. Once it is resolved, we will send out an update to the public.
We would like to reemphasize that the Roosevelt Island Tram is a safe and functional mode of transportation. POMA staff are always on board and easily identifiable with RIOC branding. In the event of any issues or concerns, they will communicate in real-time with riders to ensure their comfort and safety.
Please rest assured that we are committed to the safety and well-being of those who rely on the Roosevelt Island Tram, whether for daily commuting, tourism, or any other purpose. We will continue to work diligently to maintain and improve the safety of this vital transportation link to Manhattan.
Thank you for sharing this concern with me, and please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any further questions or suggestions.
Here are the back and forth letters from Ms Menin and Mr Haynes.
Today (Wednesday Oct 25) traveling from Manhattan on the Tram at approximately 3:30pm the cabin started rocking wildly -- women started screaming, people reported nausea. Thankfully no one vomited. Also thankfully I was seated because that severity of rocking could cause a fall and possible injury.
RIOC advisories say "POMA has assured us that there is no risk to the health and safety of our passengers." -- I don't agree. Although I heard about the recent incidents of Tram uncontrollable rocking, nothing could prepare me for today's shocking experience.
I believe RIOC is minimizing the problem and not doing enough to corect it.
UPDATE 10/26 - Today I asked RIOC President Shelton Haynes:
It appears that the Tram stopping and swinging in mid air is happening much more than in the past.
Why is that?
Does RIOC keep metrics on how often this happens and has there been a recent increase in occurrences?
If you do have metrics, please send them over so I can include them in the story.
If you don't keep metrics, why not?
Will update if there is an answer.
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