RIOC Replacing Buckling Roosevelt Island Tram Cabin Floors This Friday & Saturday, Taking One Tram Cabin Out Of Service Both Days - Residents Ask Why Do Work Taking A Tram Cabin Out Of Service On Busy NYC Marathon Weekend? Who Makes These Decisions?

Last Thursday, October 26, prior to the meeting of NYC Council Member Julie Menin with Roosevelt Island residents, two residents asked me about the buckling safety hazard of the Roosevelt Island Tram floor and shared theses photos.

Coincidentally, the next day, October 27, the Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC) announced:

Dear Roosevelt Island Community: We will be replacing the floors in both Tram cabins over a 2-day period on Friday, November 3rd and Saturday, November 4th. Please be advised that this will impact Tram travel over those two days.

To accommodate the work, one Tram cabin will be pulled out of service each day starting at 10:00AM and will return to service once the installation is completed at the end of the day. The other Tram cabin will remain fully operational for island travelers while the work is taking place. Floor replacement should take one day to complete for each cabin....

Today, RIOC reported:

Dear Roosevelt Island Community:

We will be replacing the floors in both Tram cabins over a 2-day period on Friday, November 3rd and Saturday, November 4th. Please be advised that this will impact Tram travel over those two days.

To accommodate the work, one Tram cabin will be pulled out of service each day starting at 10:00AM and will return to service once the installation is completed at the end of the day. The other Tram cabin will remain fully operational for island travelers while the work is taking place. Floor replacement should take one day to complete for each cabin.

To help island residents with their travel while this work takes place, on Friday 11/3, RIOC will be running a special evening rush hour Red Bus Shuttle between Queens Plaza and Roosevelt Island. The service will operate from 3:00PM – 7:30PM, with the first shuttle bus leaving from Cornell Tech at 3:00PM, and the last bus back from Queens Plaza South leaving at 7:30PM. This shuttle will mirror the service provided by the Red Bus Queens Plaza Weekday Morning Shuttle.

On Saturday 11/4, RIOC will run it’s normal Red Bus Shuttle to Manhattan from 3:00PM – 7:30PM, with the first shuttle bus leaving the Tram Station at 3:00PM. The last shuttle bus back to Roosevelt Island from the Manhattan Tram Station will leave at 7:30PM.

Please plan your travel accordingly and leave extra time for yourself on those days. We also encourage everyone to utilize the MTA’s F-Shuttle Train, which runs every 20 minutes on the :02, :22, and :42 every hour, and the NYC Ferry for your off-island travel.

We appreciate everyone’s flexibility and understanding while we complete this necessary work.

-Team RIOC 

Roosevelt Island resident Nicole shares this message she sent to the RIOC Board of Directors yesterday:

Please can you let RIOC know that it is a ridiculous plan to take one tram out of service THIS Fri/Sat on a weekend when NYC will see a huge increase of tourists ( and likely Tram use) because of the NYC Marathon as well as use by guests from a fully booked Graduate Hotel.

The lack of oversight and foresight is absolutely absurd. Why are we paying senior staff at RIOC so much when they don't even have the intelligence to look at a calendar.  

Another resident noted:

Tram Floor replacement... Can't be done overnight?

Why not shut down at midnight, reopen at 6 am?

The floor probably does need some replacing as it was poorly installed & badly maintained, resulting in bumps & other safety hazards. A lawsuit waiting to happen, exacerbated by overcrowding, occasionally wet floors from too much rain & foot traffic, & who knows what else ...

And then THESE things —

A Friday and a Saturday? Seriously? 

One Cabin Out of service starting at 10 am till work completed; only one cabin Operating rest of time till completed...

The refusal by RIOC to provide ANY meaningful relief to RI residents & employees who depend on the Tram as their primary, accessible, barrier-free transportation to & from Manhattan for work, medical appointments, school, Etc. remains shameful & cruel, especially when we remain F-Train-challenged.

Why they can’t run some buses, charter some vans, do something after 10 am — whether the Tram floor is being replaced or not — is just lazy and disrespectful to folks of all ages & abilities...

I’ve been flexible & understanding for 40 years. I’ve appreciated & depended on the Tram. It would be helpful if RIOC would be flexible, understanding AND support Cy & his team to help us out. 

Who at RIOC makes an operational maintenance decision that requires one Tram Cabin to be shut down on a weekend, a NYC Marathon Weekend at that? Why? 

Who is accountable? 

Is it RIOC President Shelton Haynes? 

Is it Acting Chief Operating Officer Mary Cuneen? 

Mr Haynes plans to promote Ms Cuneen to the permanent COO position if the RIOC Directors aprove. Ms Cuneen's appointment as COO was on the October 26 RIOC Board meeting agenda but the meeting was cancelled. A new date for the Board meeting has not been publicly announced yet.  

UPDATE 7:35 PM - RIOC Board Member Ben Fhala replied to Nicole. According to Mr. Fhala:

Good evening Nicole,

Thank you for your message. Unfortunately, I cannot comment on operational matters as most board members, including myself, are not regularly updated on daily operational affairs. My main source of information is the RIOC Advisories, and that is the extent of our access to such matters.

I don't have information about the urgency, complexities, vendor coordination, expected timeframe, or whether the work will conclude before the afternoon rush hour.

The chair has forwarded your feedback to Shelton, Our CEO, who has acknowledged receipt. We hope he will either forward it to the relevant department or provide you with more context.

We appreciate your engagement with the board and look forward to hearing from you in our next Board meeting scheduled for November 14th.

P.S. I usually wait a few days before responding to allow time for others to contribute. As a new resident board member, I've made it my mission to ensure that all emails sent to the board receive a response, even if it's just an acknowledgment when we lack additional information to share.