he Roosevelt Island Tramway was born in 1976 as a means to shuttle residents to and from Manhattan. The tramway, known as the 'tram' by people who use it, became a reality after the residents of Roosevelt Island had complained for years that the New York City Transit Authority had failed to provide a subway service from Roosevelt Island to Manhattan and Queens.

Twenty-four years and a subway station later, the tram is still doing its 120 trips daily, transporting people to and from the two-mile island in the East River.

View from the tram on its way to Manhattan

More than 30 million people have enjoyed the picturesque view over the Manhattan skyline, watched the traffic on the Queensboro Bridge and seen the ships sail by 250 feet below them For many Roosevelt Island residents, particularly the parents of young children and the large population of senior citizens, the tram service is safer and cleaner than the subway.

espite the qualities of the tram, many commuters have now chosen the subway and the number of tram users dropped drastically after the subway opened in 1989. In the 1990s, daily tram use dropped from a peak of 6,000 to about 3,000. The decreasing number of commuters has caused economic problems for the Roosevelt Island Operating Corp., the company that operates the tram.

The tram was built by Vonroll, a Swiss company, and the cabin hold up to 125 people. A ride takes 3 1/2-minutes, and brings passengers out on a 900-foot trip from Roosevelt Island to the Manhattan terminal at Second Avenue and 60th Street. The Roosevelt Island Tram is the only commuter cable car in North America.

The number of tram users have dropped after the subway opened.

The Manhattan siden entry level to the
Roosevelt Island Tramway