Roosevelt Island Tram Modernization Project

March 1 – September 03, 2010

Project Briefing
Roosevelt Island February 24, 2010
Operating Corporation
of the State of New York
591 Main Street Overview
Roosevelt Island, NY 10044
(212) 832-4540
On March 1, 2010, just about two months shy of the 34th anniversary of its
rioc.ny.gov opening, the Roosevelt Island Aerial Tramway will be shut down for six
David A. Paterson
months for extensive modernization upgrades. Opened in May 1976, the
Governor Tram (the first aerial tramway system in the U.S. to be used for urban mass
Stephen H. Shane
transportation) was projected to have a useful life of 17 years. Installed as a
President “stop gap” measure, because promised subway service to Roosevelt Island
Chief Executive Officer
(RI) had been delayed by decades 1 , the Tram has served New Yorkers
Kenneth A. Leitner well, currently carrying over 2 million passengers per year.
Vice President
General Counsel
Roosevelt Island, now in its 40th year as a mixed income residential
Fernando Martinez
Vice President
community is managed by the Roosevelt Island Operating Corp. of the State
Operations of New York (RIOC). Currently, approximately 14,000 New Yorkers live on
Steven Chironis
the 147 acre island in the middle of the East River. The island was
Vice President previously known as Welfare Island, having been home to a concentration
Chief Financial Officer
of the City’s welfare institutions during the 19th and early 20th Centuries. By
Rosina Abramson 1969 the landscape was primarily dominated by abandoned institutional
Vice President
Planning and Inter-
buildings. It was re-envisioned by New York City and State via a 1969
Governmental Affairs General Development Plan (GDP) as a community for mixed income
families with special emphasis placed on handicap accessibility, long before
Board of Directors universal access for the disabled was a cornerstone of enlightened
Brian Lawlor
Chairperson
government planning policy. The City leased the island to the New York
Fay Fryer Christian State Urban Development Corporation (UDC) 2 for 99 years to build and
Katherine Teets Grimm
Jonathan Kalkin
manage this vision. RI is due to revert to City management in 2068.
David Kraut
Robert L. Megna
Howard Polivy
The once “stop gap” Tram has become an icon of the New York City
Michael Shinozaki skyline. Since 2005 Tram service has been integrated with the MTA’s
Margaret Smith
MetroCard system, providing Tram riders with the same bus and subway
transfer privileges enjoyed by MTA passengers. The Tram modernization,
projected to cost up to $25 million, is being funded with $10 million from the
RIOC budget and $15 million from New York State.

1
The subway opened in 1990. Currently, Roosevelt Island is serviced by the “F” train. Due to the
ensuing population growth spurt in Queens, the subway is very crowded during morning rush hours by
the time it arrives at the Roosevelt Island station. Although the Transit Authority believes there is
capacity for the additional passengers during the Tram shut down period, the elderly, disabled and
younger children (when taken together, a significant portion of the Roosevelt Island population) have a
great deal of difficulty using the subway and rely on the Tram to travel to Manhattan, very much like
outer borough residents rely on express bus service, to get across the City’s Rivers.
2
RIOC succeeded UDC as the operator and developer of Roosevelt Island, via NYS legislation passed
in 1984. RIOC formally assumed operations in 1986.
When modernization work is completed, virtually everything constituting the aerial
tramway system will have been replaced except the three towers that support the
cables on which it runs. The tower bases have been deemed sound by engineers
requiring only minor reinforcement measures. The tower tops will be replaced to
accommodate a wider cable gauge, “dual haul” system, a more advanced cable
operating system available as a result of advances made in “ropeway” (as cable-
propelled transit systems are known) technology in the 33 plus years since installation
of the Roosevelt Island system.

The current “single haul” system is comparable to the operation of a mechanical

clothesline because both cabins must travel along the cable loop at the same time, with
each cabin ending its trip at the opposite side. Therefore, both cabins must be
operational during non-peak travel times and both must be taken out of operation to
perform maintenance on just one part of the system. In contrast, the dual haul system
which enables the cabins to travel independently, will allow for greater scheduling
flexibility during rush and off-peak hours; permit maintenance on one side while the
other remains operational and eliminate the need for high level rescue equipment.

Supplemental Transportation During Shut Down Period

During the six month Tram shutdown, in addition to the MTA’s F train subway service
and Q102 bus, RIOC will operate special shuttle buses ($1 fare) to accommodate those
residents and visitors for whom using the F train is too difficult. During peak morning
rush hours (between 7 and 9:30 AM), a RIOC bus, on the hour and half hour, will make
the run from the island to the Queens Plaza E,G,R & V subway stop every half-hour.
During non-peak periods (10 AM to 2:30 PM and 7 PM to 11 PM), when traffic is less
congested on the Queensboro Bridge, the RIOC bus will depart the island and run
express to a bus stop on the west side of 2nd Ave. between 58th and 59th Street. It will
pick up passengers from that bus stop and run express back to the Island.

Roosevelt Island Tram Facts:

x Opened in May 1976.
x Built by the Swiss company Von Roll with American designers Prentice & Chan,
Ohlhausen.
x Operated by the Swiss company Doppelmayr, with domestic supervisory
personnel and on-site management, under a series of five year contracts with
RIOC. A temporary contract extension is in place until Tram shut down for six
months on March 1, 2010.
x Travels from the station at 2nd Avenue between 59th and 60th Streets to the
station on Roosevelt Island.
x Travels a distance of 3,100 feet at a speed of 16 miles per hour in 4.5 minutes.
x Rises to a maximum height of 250 ft.
x Carries a maximum of 125 passengers plus an attendant per cabin. It annually
transports more than two million New Yorkers (showing a growing ridership over
each of the past 2 years).

2
 x Runs every 15 minutes during off peak hours (including weekends); during
weekday rush hours (7:00 AM to 10:00 AM and 3 PM to 8 PM), it operates every
7.5 minutes or 8 times an hour. Because of the dual haul system 3 being
introduced as a result of the modernization project, rush hour schedules will be
more responsive to actual demand.
x Is completely handicap accessible.
x Accepts the MTA MetroCard as a valid fare, allowing transfers to NYCTA
subways and buses. Revenues are shared with the MTA.
x Pays NYC a Franchise fee, totaling .05% of gross receipts.
x Is certified by New York State Department of Labor for operational safety and
compliance with NY State code regulations.
x Operates in all weather conditions except for lightning and winds over 40 miles
per hour.
x Is subject to the NYC Departments of Buildings, Transportation, Parks and the
Office of Emergency Management health and safety requirements and
construction site review jurisdictions. Federal Aviation Administration and the
U.S. Coast Guard have been assured that flight and navigational channels will be
maintained during construction.

Modernization Project Organization

x Owner: Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation of the State of New York (RIOC).
x Owner’s Representative and Construction Managers: LiRo Engineers, Inc., New
York, NY.
x Owner’s Engineer: Parametrix, Inc., Denver Colorado.
x Design-Build Contractor: Pomagalski, S.A. (Poma), Grenoble France.
x Civil and Structural Engineering Design Consultants to Poma: Thornton
Tomasetti, New York, NY.
x Fabricators and new Tram Manager: Leitner-Poma of America, Inc., Grand
Junction, Colorado.
x Local Subcontractor, Fabricator and Erector: Metropolitan Walters, LLC, New
York, NY.

Project Milestones
x Spring 2007 – Independent engineer Parametrix examines Tram and proposes
rebuild/replace options and upgrades to extend its useful operating life. Resulting
engineering report is the basis of a “design build” Request for Proposals (RFP)
issued during the summer of 2008.
x Responsive bids received from the world’s two largest and only companies
capable of performing the specialized work – Doppelmayr and Poma.
x After review and approval by the RIOC Board of Directors, a design-build
contract is awarded by RIOC to Poma in Nov. 2008 to modernize the Tram for a
30 year design life. A Notice to Proceed is issued by RIOC to Poma on Nov. 25,
2008.

3
The dual haul system will permit both cars to start on the busier side and return simultaneously, rather than the
current system which requires that a cabin be in each station.

3
 x Engineering, fabrication, health and safety, government permitting processes
ensue.
x System shutdown: March 1, 2009.
x First tramway lane opens – August 13, 2010
x Second tramway lane opens – September 03, 2010.

Construction Impacts
Because one Tram station 4 and two 5 of the three towers are located in Manhattan,
traffic on Second, First and York Avenues will be sporadically affected as will traffic on
59th and 60th Streets, and the Manhattan bound upper roadway of the Queensboro
Bridge. All construction work, including use of cranes will be pursuant to NYC Buildings
Department permits and regulations. All lane closures and traffic interruptions will be
pursuant to NYC Department of Transportation permits and regulations. All NYC
agencies with health and safety review responsibilities will retain jurisdiction over this
NY State sponsored project.

Project Benefits
x Increased reliability.
x Service life extended 30 years.
x Each tramway line can be operated independently in event of: malfunction,
preventive maintenance, rush hours and other peak demands, off-peak
demands.
x Integrated rescue system will ensure that in the event of a malfunction of any
component or power failure, the cabin cars will be brought back to the nearest
station using redundant power and motive systems, avoiding high level
emergency rescue operations.
x Reduced downtime for maintenance and repairs. One lane can be shut down for
repairs while the other lane can provide uninterrupted service.
x Reduced maintenance and operating costs.
x Improved quality of travel, providing a smoother ride under high winds due to
new wide track rope gauge.
x State-of-the-art technology brings higher levels of energy efficiency.

4
The Manhattan station is on the west side of Second Ave. between 59th and 60th Streets.
5
Both towers are on 60th Street, between Second Avenue and York Avenue. .