Only 1 Of 5 Roosevelt Island Red Buses Currently In Service, '"We're Sorry And Are Working As Hard As We Can To Restore Full Service As Quickly As Possible" Says RIOC - At Least Red Bus GPS Tracking Beta Testing Working Now

As reported last June 21:

RIOC Says 5 Roosevelt Island Red Buses Are Required For Daily Operations - Unforeseen Maintenance Issues Reduce Red Bus Fleet Currently To Only 2 In Service

Image From RIOC January 17,2024 Operations Advisory Committee Presentation

There is currently only one Roosevelt Island Red Bus operating.

The Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC) announced at approximately 9 PM last Saturday evening:

Dear Roosevelt Island Community:

We were informed this evening that one of our buses suffered a significant mechanical issue and needed to be taken off the road. Unfortunately, we are now down to one bus on Main Street and expect this to remain the case for the next several days, at a minimum.

We are under no illusions about how frustrating this situation is for island residents. We sincerely apologize for these issues and are working as hard as we can to restore full service as quickly as possible.

This is now the third bus that is currently inactive due to repair work. Our Red Bus fleet is aging, and the buses we have are running constantly. Though we have ordered two new buses, we don’t expect them to arrive on the island until the end of 2024/early 2025. For now, our Transportation team is doing its very best to keep things steady, but the situation is difficult.

The one bus currently on the road will be running on a “load and go” basis to try and keep people moving. You can currently track the Red Bus using the Transit app (RIOC is in the beta testing phase of this bus tracking, but it is live for the public to see) so we encourage folks to download this free app and check the bus location on the island before departing.

We are also encouraging riders to utilize the Q102 bus, which has free transfers for both the F-Train and Tram. The Q102 can also be tracked through the Transit app, an added benefit to downloading it.

When we have more details on when full service will be restored, we will be sure to share them with the community.

Sincerely,

The RIOC Executive Team

A Tipster reports the possibility of RIOC utilizing the Roosevelt Island Disabled Association (RIDA) bus on a temporary basis to supplement the Red Bus service.

A resident asks:

Will the Octagon increase their shuttle service?

Don't know the answer.

Another resident adds:

I've basically given up on using the Red Bus. It's unreliable at best and it seems like the RIOC doesn't even bother to communicate.

Other residents don't have the option to give up on the Red Bus. For many, the Red Bus is an essential transportation service on Roosevelt Island.

Temporarily leasing a bus was discussed during the May 1, 2024 RIOC Operations Advisory Committee meeting. RIOC deemed the leasing price tag of $19 thousand a month for a required 12 months at $228 thousand annually to be price prohibitive.

Here's the discussion.

A Roosevelt Island resident using the nom de plume "Fed Up With RIOC" comments on RIOC temporarily leasing buses from the bus manufacturer as described in the Operations Committee meeting:

The incompetence of the past administration has to be replaced with creative problem solving. Going to the existing Bus vendor and asking them to be a solution provider makes no sense. We do not need state of the art buses to solve the pressing problem . The pressure on Island Residents will be reduced even if they leased a fleet of old school buses that run every 10 minutes...with the sole remaining red bus running as frequently as it can to accommodate our wheelchair bound neighbors and those who cannot climb stairs.

Hopefully there is room for creative thinking at RIOC and quick action.

Another proposed idea from a resident is borrowing a bus from the MTA?

More info on the Roosevelt Island Red Bus issue including RIOC Board approval to purchase 2 new Red Buses and how we got to the present situation at this prior post.      

Click here to get the Roosevelt Island Red Bus GPS Transit app.

Remember that the Red Bus GPS app is still in testing phase. According to RIOC:

The Red Bus tracking on the Transit app is still in its testing phase. We weren’t ready to announce it yet as we’re still working through some issues but given our latest bus troubles, we decided to mention it publicly as it can be a helpful tool for riders. 

But there are still bugs that we’re working through. Buses are outfitted with tracking devices; we aren’t using riders to do the tracking for us. Passenger counts on the app are always going to be approximate, but safely assume that with one bus running it’s going to be quite full. 

But give the Red Bus GPS a try. When the kinks are worked out, it will be very useful.

UPDATE 8/13 - A resident shares photo of 4 Roosevelt Island Red Buses at the Motorgate yard last evening.

These are all decommissioned non-working buses used for their spare parts for working Red Buses.