Tram Circle Traffic Sign Update

As promised by Roosevelt Island Public Safety Director Keith Guerra a new sign has been added to the Tram Circle making it clear to drivers that they must bear right around the circle when looking to make a left turn towards the steam plant and beyond. I had reported on the shortfall in the prior signage last month despite the added street marking that PSD had put into effect.

In addition PSD has moved the sign out from the circle making it clearer to drivers and ensuring that the Red Bus drivers tighten their turns leaving no chance that they would ever hit a vehicle sitting behind the sign waiting for the bus to complete its turn.

Transit Respect: Inclusion in a Traffic Report

Normally the Roosevelt Island Tram is not even noticed by transit reporters unless they are doing a special report good or bad about the Tram. Certainly most web sites that include traffic updates don't reference the tram on a normal day.

So imagine my surprise when at work I pulled up the traffic report on my Bloomberg terminal and found a listing stating "Roosevelt Island Tram - No delays reported". Pretty cool.

Traffic Circles, Traffic Patterns and Onstreet Markings

Dear RIOC Public Safety Director Keith Guerra:

Can I ask for confirmation what the allowed traffic pattern is around the traffic circle by the Tram Plaza? On a few mornings when walking to theTram along the sidewalk adjoining the Soccer Field at Firefighters Field I have seen cars looking to make left turns ignore the posted sign and proceed to drive to the left of the curbed circle. One morning a car almost hit my son as we were trying to cross the street to the Tram when the car failed to bear right around the traffic circle. One afternoon this past May a car cut off a Red Bus apparently thinking this sort of left turn was allowed. It is possible though at that time the existing sign was not there. I posted a report of that incident on my blog as I was in the affected bus.

As opposed to the traffic circle / triangle by Blackwell House where street markings make it clear that forking left is allowed and the street markings also prevent cars who are making "U Turns" from making such turns without stopping the traffic circle by the Tram has no such on-street markings or additional signage. The existing circle is apparently being interpreted as only being applicable to cars looking to make U-turns. Certainly if even a moving bus is not making it clear to oncoming drivers we need better signage and on street markings.

Have I misinterpreted the intended traffic pattern? I believe we cannot wait for Riverwalk construction to conclude and even if we need to paint the street several times before the two existing buildings under constructionare complete I feel the added paint and signage would be worth preventingany injuries or worse. Your feedback is appreciated?

Thank you,
Eric


From: "Keith Guerra"
Date: Mon, 14 Jul 2008 12:05:33
To: rooseveltisland360@gmail.com
Subject: Re: Traffic Circles, Traffic Patterns and Onstreet Markings

Eric,

Thanks for your e-mail. We posted the sign currently on the traffic circle by the tram after we received complaints similar to the one you describe. Traffic is supposed to flow counter clockwise around the circle. Our officers are issuing moving violation summonses to those seen in violation. Unfortunately, in the case of the car in your scenario, if the violation is not actually observed by an officer, a summons cannot be issued. We will continue to pay special attention to that traffic circle.

Regards,
Keith Guerra
Director of Public Safety

UPDATE: 6:00pm

Apparently sometime in the last few days since I took the pictures at top RIOC painted the additional traffic flow yellow lines and cross walk. I can't say whether it was there this morning as I took the Red Bus to the Tram station. Definitely a step in the right direction. Subsequent to Mr. Guerra's above reply he sent another email where he indicated that PSD would look into posting an additional sign stating textually "Traffic Keep Right" in addition to the existing graphic sign.

Flag Etiquette: Step by Step

One of the few rules I learned from my days in boy scouts was to respect our flag. As a result since I have moved here to Roosevelt Island I have winced almost every day I pass the flags flown at the Main Street traffic triangle and at Firefighter's Field. I am not a flag waiving lunatic but seeing those flags as tattered at their edges as they are is just wrong.

What has also bugged me is seeing these two flags flown 24 hours a day in every kind of foul weather. I can deal with the bad weather as I don't really expect to see RIOC or the PSD raising and lowering the flags daily but it has always been my understanding that under the US Flag Code (yes it's an actual law 1, 2) that flags flown at night must be lit via a spotlight or other means.

I finally got to a point where I raised each of these issues to Stephen Shane, RIOC President, who has assured me that each flag will be examined (and I inferred replaced by his emails) and that lighting will be investigated and addressed. Lighting for the Main Street traffic triangle will be worked out once the traffic and pedestrian reconfiguration, currently under way, at that location is completed.

Straphanger's Advocate Russianoff Regarding Roosevelt Island Ridership Levels - Part 2

Gene Russianoff was kind enough to answer a second question today, June 13, 2008, regarding Roosevelt Island ridership levels in his guest column "About Mass Transit" on the NY Times City Room blog.

Marie Babcock (Resident):

Q. Who is monitoring rider usage and population shifts? I live on Roosevelt Island.The rerouting of the Q and F trains and the huge population increase on Roosevelt Island in recent years has caused a major problem here. At rush hours the F trains are so packed arriving here that we are not able to board. Sometimes three trains will pass through with only a small number at the packed station able to board. Now the RI Tram is in need of some long shutdowns due to overdue repair work. It can only get worse.

Gene Russianoff:

A. I have received a number of e-mail messages about crowded conditions on the F at Roosevelt Island. Clearly, whatever New York City Transit’s operations planning department is doing is not enough. Or worse yet, the Queens Boulevard line is at capacity and no more trains are possible. Maybe your elected officials should ask Transit’s President Howard Roberts, Jr. to come to a morning rush hour.

Ridership Levels of Alternative Roosevelt Island Red Bus

Based on the below statistics it appears that Roosevelt Island residents have not been taking advantage of or see the benefit of taking the Red Bus during the morning rush hour periods, to Queens Plaza or during non-rush periods into Manhattan directly. I would expect that this weekend the numbers will spike higher as I recall weekends being a pretty high usage rate during the Summer of 2006 when the Tram was out and during Subway disruption weekends. But we shall see what happens.

Looking at these stats it would appear that RIOC may decide that the Red Bus option should not be repeated during the planned 2009 outage as they are using this outage as a gauge torwards resident usage for that later period.

My only thoughts are that I wonder if greater use would be made of this option if the Red Bus would to first loop around the Island as the Q102 does before it leaves the Island. Could it be that for many residets the added time to first get themselves to Gristedes is an added impediment to the use of this option?

A good question asked of Mr. Shane by Patrick Stewart, a member of the RIOC Board of Directors, is of the stats provided how many riders were seniors or disabled for whom the subway stairs / escalators / elevators may prove challenging. Mr. Shane has not responded to that question or may not have thta level of detail availabel to him if it was even captured at all.

I will admit for my purposes taking the bus to Queens Plaza puts me further away from my commuting goals distance wise and it makes no sense for me during rush our periods. If the subway goes out though this option will be imperative for all residents wishing to head off the island.

-----Original Message-----

From: "Stephen Shane"
Date: Thu, 12 Jun 2008 11:32:23
Subject: Red Bus Ridership during Tram outage - Stats for 6/11/08:

From RI to Queens Plaza (6AM-9:30AM):
16 passengers 8 trips

From QP to RI (returns):
0 passengers 8 trips

From RI to Manhattan (10AM-2PM):
9 Passengers 5 trips

From Manhattan to RI (returns at 10:30 AM-2:30PM);\:
8 Passengers 5 trips

From RI to Manhattan (7PM-11PM)
9 Passengers 5 trips

From Manhattan to RI (returns at 7:30PM-11:30PM):
9 Passengers 5 trips

We shall see as the word spreads and/or sinks in. Hard to justify at this level! An experiment.

Steve

Stephen H. Shane
President & CEO
Roosevelt Island Operating Corp.

Roosevelt Island's Main Street: A Traffic Minefield

Living on Roosevelt Island as any resident knows has its pluses and minuses regarding traffic. We have less car trafic than many NYC streets but at the same time we know if we get too comfortable with that fact we risk crossing the street without looking and possibly being hit by a car or other vehicle.

Due to the uniqueness of the Island we also have traffic rules set by State law and a multitude of yield and stop signs that very often confuse drivers such that they start and stop and occasionally miss a road sign and not understand how to react to others. At intersections here the pedestrian takes priority such that drivers are supposed to yield. But as residents know they don't always do so.

Later today I will post a poll asking how well do you think drivers on the island pay attention to the road signs.

Update: Roosevelt Island Bridge – Pedestrian Walkway

I had not checked in a few weeks regarding the status of the pedestrian walkway at the Roosevelt Island Bridge to LIC but the above cropped picture confirms that the temporary walkway is now open and in use by both wheeled and pedestrian traffic. The permanent walkway is now closed due to the construction.

The full uncropped photo was taken by Schneider31 on 2008Jan16 and can be found on Flickr HERE.

Congestion Pricing & Roosevelt Island Car Owners. Non-Issue?

Do Roosevelt Island car owners drive their cars on a frequent basis into Manhattan during rush hour? Will the proposal to change the “border” from 86th Street to 60th Street make any difference?

How would it work if you drive over the bridge and head straight on East 60th Street itself but then make a right hand turn onto one of the avenues heading North would you avoid the charge? This question would apply to anyone coming over the Bridge not just Roosevelt Island drivers. I have not seen the answer on any of the site and articles so far.

Conceivably some residents do drive their cars into Manhattan during the rush and business hours. Is it a high percentage? Very unlikely. One of the reasons residents live here is to take advantage of the mass transit we have and the proximity to Manhattan. But I am sure somebody on the Island worries about these issues.

Space Exists to Add Lane at Subway Sta. Bottleneck

A little more than a week ago, on December 13th, I pointed out the obvious that at random points of many morning rush hours the Subway Station portion of Main Street simply becomes a bottleneck and all traffic comes to a stop.

My suggestion was to widen the Southbound lane of the road. It appears that the space exists based on the above photo. It would require moving a few electrical poles and creating / enlarging the current barriers so vehicles could not hit the subway tunnel air vent (or whatever that ugly structure is) but it appears possible.

Congestion Planning Needed for Roosevelt Island Southtown?

Any Roosevelt Island resident can tell you that if there is going to be momentary delay in their morning mass transit commute off the Island it will take place right outside the local subway station.

The reasons for this congestion is that Main Street (or whatever that side is called nowadays) is (1) at it thinnest point, (2) is at an angle, (3) has the Red and Q102 buses stopping on either side of the road trying to discharge / pickup passengers (4) parked delivery trucks, (5) is adjoined by a unofficial parking lot for MTA employees and MTA construction workers, and lastly includes (6) intermittent but constant construction vehicles related to Southtown expansion. And on top of all this is one of the only access roads for employees and staff to get to (7) the Goldwater Hospital Campus.

The presence of the Red and Q102 bus is somewhat constant during rush hour and when RIOC tried to move one leg of the Red Bus route to Main Street proper that was met with quick resistance and eventually settled back to its present pattern of pickups right outside the subway.

The only factor that perhaps can me modified is where the delivery trucks are allowed to park. Currently they either sit on the subway side at the bottleneck or park in the bus drop off cutout just beyond the bottleneck.

At least theoretically two of these factors will disappear over time, #s 5 and 6, as construction ceases in Southtown.

In truth RIOC should hire a professional traffic engineer to determine what to do. But as a layman with an opinion here is my best shot:

One possible congestion easing plan would be to require the MTA employee and construction worker personal vehicles to park where the Southtown construction workers park just off the Eastern branch of Main Street. Then widen the bottleneck as close to the subway air vent as possible creating a wider traffic lane and designated delivery parking spots. These spots should be parallel to the road with defined entry points. We don't need trucks backing out into traffic causing the same issues to resurface. The picture above is an example of how veicles constantly move into the opposing lanes when traffic is backed up.

Certainly no one would ever agree to congestion pricing on Roosevelt Island but we do need something to ease traffic through the morning rush hour as this juncture is an accident waiting to happen with so many pedestrians and vehicles being forced through a space no more than 50 to 75 feet wide (my guess) at its thinnest point.

Roosevelt Island Bridge Construction - Lane Reversal Schedule

According to a RIOC advisory issued this morning the below table is a schedule of the upcoming temporary lane reversals for the purpose of installing the "above roadway painting containment system" on the lift span as well as deck repairs.

NYPD Traffic Enforcement Agents will be deployed at 36th Avenue and Vernon Boulevard to mitigate vehicular traffic. Pedestrians will continue to access the existing sidewalk without any interruptions.

So far we have had a few of these lane reversals for this containment system but we have only seen installations below the bridge and not above.

Roosevelt Island Bridge - Construction Advisory

RIOC issued the following advisory earlier today:

"On Tuesday October 30, 2007 & Wednesday October 31, 2007 between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. a temporary lane reversal will be established on the Roosevelt Island Bridge for the purpose of installing the above roadway painting containment system on the lift span.

NYPD Traffic Enforcement Agents will be deployed at 36th Avenue and Vernon Boulevard to mitigate vehicular traffic.

Pedestrians will continue to access the existing sidewalk without any interruptions."

Roosevelt Island Bridge Reconstruction to Start – For the Next Two Years or More

It’s after October 1, 2007 so we should expect to start seeing the NYC DOT contractors begin to work on the Roosevelt Island Bridge. As I reported on August 31st, the NYC DOT posted its 30 day notice that construction would begin on or after October 1st and that the project is scheduled to take two years.

According to the official Work Notice, issued by the NYC DOT, they have assigned a Project Community Liaison, Ms. Tiffany Asberry, to provide our community with information and to respond to any project related questions, comments, or complaints. Ms. Asberry can be reached at 212-758-1060.

The above picture is provided as a reminder of what the bridge looks like today before the shrouds of cloth are put up making the bridge look like a giant piñata.

Transportation Advisories - 9/29 Bus - 10/2 Tram

RIOC issued the below transportation advisories for tomorrow, 9/29 and for next Tuesday, 10/2:

Bus Advisory

On Saturday, September 29, the Roosevelt Island Buses will not be operating from 8:30 am - 10:30 am. This is due to a Running Event that will be on a section of the bus route. Normal operation of bus service will commence following the event.

Tram Advisory

On Tuesday, October 2, the Tramway will be shutting down early at 10:00 pm This schedule change is necessary in order to perform maintenance. The Tramway will re-open at 6:00 am on Wednesday October 3.

Shortlived Bridge Outage - How Many More to Come?

Apparently the bridge is now operational and has been returned to a "closed" position allowing vehicles to cross onto and off the island.

RIOC's newest advisory as of 11:00 am - "Special Roosevelt Island Bridge Advisory":

"The NYCDOT has affected repair and operation of the Roosevelt Island Bridge, and the RI Tram has resumed normal operation schedule. "

So the question is with constant opening and closings due to the UN how many more outages can we expect? Probably a few more unless they have figured out what caused these last two.

Roosevelt Island Bridge Out of Service - No Vehicular Access to Island

According to a "Special Roosevelt Island Bridge Advisory" issued this morning at 10:00 am by the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation the Roosevelt Island Bridge is currently out of service for the second time in one week.

The notice states:

The Roosevelt Island Bridge is experiencing mechanical difficulties. NYCDOT is aware of the problem and is affecting a remedy to the problem. FDNY Emergency Standby units are in place on the island. The Roosevelt Island Tramway has cancelled scheduled maintenance and will be running at rush hour schedule through the duration of the bridge outage.

Watch for updates as we receive them.

Update: 10:50 am

According to a representative at RIOC, there is pedestrian access across the bridge as the bridge is stuck open, like Friday night, by only 6 to 12 inches. I am surprised that NYC DOT would allow access for fear of the bridge suddenly dropping into its standard position and causing any pedestrians to lose their balance.

Roosevelt Island Bridge - Another U.N. Related Late Night Advisory

It appears that per the below advisory, issued by RIOC, the bride will be opening and closing late tonight. I wonder how many openings and closings they have run due to the United Nations at this point. And as a result do we have a full time ambulance sitting on the island side of the bridge in case of an emergency?

"Roosevelt Island Bridge Advisory

For tonight only Tuesday 9/25/07 the hours of operation for the Roosevelt Island Bridge will be extended until 11:00 PM due to US Coast Guard UN Security Zone East River Closures.

For Wednesday 9/26/07 until Friday 10/05/07, hours of operations for the Roosevelt Island Bridge will remain unchanged, from 7:00 AM until 7:00 PM.

The bridge will be subject to openings throughout these time periods."

U.N. Related Roosevelt Island Bridge & Southpoint Advisories

Southpoint Advisory

As of Tuesday, September 18th through Tuesday, October 2nd,
Southpoint will be subject to closure due to the U.N. General Assembly.

Bridge Advisory

Due to the U.N. Security Zone closures on the East River,
NYC DOT Bridge Operations Unit will be performing openings on the Roosevelt Island Bridge.
The openings will be starting Tuesday, September 18th through
Tuesday, October 2nd between the hours of 7:00am - 7:00pm.
Please be advised that each opening will take anywhere from
8 to 10 minutes to be completed. Traffic crossing the bridge will be interrupted.

Starting Oct. 1st - Abrasive Blasting Paint Removal on Roosevelt Island Bridge

Starting on October 1, 2007 or soon thereafter contractors will begin abrasive blasting procedures to remove the paint on the RI Bridge. The blasting per the 30 day notice posted today on the RIOC advisory webpage indicates that the blasting will be fully contained to protect the public. Per the Reconstruction Project brochure (which was stuffed in the plastic containing a recent Main Street Wire) vehicle and pedestrian access across the bridge will be maintained at all times.



The blasting process is scheduled to be completed by August 2009 (not 2008 but 2009) and could conceivably be running 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This statement is not stated in the brochure which indicates that general work will be between 7am and 7pm. So for the folks living on Main Street facing the bridge be prepared for noise along the lines of the abrasive blasting noise one hears by the 59th Street Bridge.