NYC 10044. The Main Street WIRE

At the City Council Transportation Committee hearing last week, several residents signed up to testify; each had up to two minutes to say his or her piece.

Prof. Thomas Templeton of Weill Medical College told Councilmembers, "The quality of life of the post-doc is one of the greatest concerns that New York City faces in having our biomedical community on a par with other cities such as Boston, San Diego, Seattle, Washington DC, and the Tram is essential to that vibrancy, and the Tram is absolutely essential not only as a component of multiple transportation options to and from the Island, but also as an essential component of the quality of life... Without it, the Island is claustrophobic; the East River becomes a much greater barrier..."

Arline Jacoby, who was injured recently when unrepaired paving blocks here caused her to fall, pointed out, "Roosevelt Island is run by the State. I beg you to investigate everything because there are so many things that need your attention."

Jacqueline Barnes: "The use of a ruler with Doppelmayr would have stopped the haul rope from being eight feet short, which was one of our shutdowns. The radio communication has been terrible..."

Dr. Joel Pardee (Associate Dean, Weill-Cornell Medical Center): "...the Tramway serves as an almost indispensable link between our residence buildings on the Island and the medical center... Our faculty and post-doctoral fellows find the Tram far more convenient and faster and personally safer than the subway...

Margie Smith (Vice President, RIRA): "...the disease is RIOC. If they had asked those questions you asked today a year ago when we got a couple of clues about outages, we wouldn’t be here today..."

Brian Baker (Manhattan Park Apartments): "...45% of our residents are employed by the United Nations, and the Tram is their mode of transportation..."

Sherie Helstien (Secretary, RIRA Common Council): "...I’m here to ask the City Council to pass a resolution urging RIOC to impose a moratorium on all new residential construction on Roosevelt Island until a positive resolution to transportation problems occurs..."

Matthew Katz (former President, RIRA): "...the incident was a failure of overisght, not of equipment... It’s remarkable how this essential component of New York’s transportation web is the only component of the system not subsidized by government – possibly in the entire United States.

Frank Farance (RIRA Communications Chair): "Why doesn’t the Tram have a procedure or checklist to use in their operations and in their emergency operation? ... This was luck. This was under ideal conditions... We were incredibly lucky."

Jennifer Fitzgerald: "I can’t tell you the community that the Tram builds... Moving here, I think New York can be an impersonal big City, and the Tram really has provided the situation where it’s built a small community..."

Sharon Bermon: "I made the decision to participate in my first multi-day bike ride... deciding that I would ride my bike several days a week... it’s almost impossible to do it without the Tram..."

Martin Atkins: "I was here to listen to Mr. Berman. Where is Mr. Berman now to listen to myself and everybody else who spoke? They always turn deaf ears...