# 125 People Dangling Over Manhattan! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 2, 2005, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/125-people-dangling-over-manhattan/319799 "2005-09-02T21:10:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2005, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/125-people-dangling-over-manhattan/319799/1 "2005-09-02T21:10:53Z")
What would be the lead story on any other day, but today is mentioned only 18 minutes into the news: a power failure has stalled two Roosevelt Island trams, carrying about 125 people, one over the East River and one over the East Side of Manhattan! Every time I complain about living in NJ, and commuting via the PATH train or the Lincoln Tunnel, I’m glad I don’t have to take the Roosevelt Island tram . . . ---
**Author:** ![Draelin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce73a5/32.png) [@Draelin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Draelin)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2005, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/125-people-dangling-over-manhattan/319799/2 "2005-09-02T21:24:11Z")
Hell, just _looking_ at that tram scares the crap out of me. Those poor bastards. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2005, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/125-people-dangling-over-manhattan/319799/3 "2005-09-02T23:51:42Z")
Where is Spiderman? ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2005, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/125-people-dangling-over-manhattan/319799/4 "2005-09-03T00:12:29Z")
880 WCBS AM reported they were in no danger. It may take til midnight to get them going again. I heard this around 5pm. I thought this happened every few years? ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2005, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/125-people-dangling-over-manhattan/319799/5 "2005-09-03T00:17:21Z")
> [@jrfranchi](#): > > 880 WCBS AM reported they were in no danger. > It may take til midnight to get them going again. I heard this around 5pm. Stuck in a little tram dangling over the river with 60 people, with no a/c and the windows won’t open and it’s nearly 90 out? Roosevelt Island better have _damn_ good rent. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2005, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/125-people-dangling-over-manhattan/319799/6 "2005-09-03T00:23:28Z")
> [@Eve](#): > > Stuck in a little tram dangling over the river with 60 people, with no a/c and the windows won’t open and it’s nearly 90 out? Roosevelt Island better have _damn_ good rent. I believe the reason to live on Roosevelt Island is; it is the ultimate gated community. Professionals feel very safe on the Island. What’s an occasional break down. 😉 Actually I’ve been trapped in a subway for 3 hours. I was ready to break out and walk the tunnels to get out. I think that is scarier than a commanding view of NYC. I still wouldn’t want to be stuck, but if CBS is correct, they’ll be okay. Hopefully no one on board with a heart condition. ---
**Author:** ![Feydeau](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/df788c/32.png) [@Feydeau](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Feydeau)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2005, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/125-people-dangling-over-manhattan/319799/7 "2005-09-03T00:39:43Z")
Why do people still use the tram? There’s a subway ine that stops on Roosevelt Island, isn’t there? ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2005, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/125-people-dangling-over-manhattan/319799/8 "2005-09-03T01:06:50Z")
> [@Feydeau](#): > > Why do people still use the tram? There’s a subway ine that stops on Roosevelt Island, isn’t there? [http://www.onnyturf.com/subwaymap.php](http://www.onnyturf.com/subwaymap.php) Wow, I didn’t know the \*\*F train \*\* stopped there. But as I said before, I would rather be stuck on the tram then on a subway. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2005, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/125-people-dangling-over-manhattan/319799/9 "2005-09-03T01:53:47Z")
Didn’t the tramline break, sending the tram and its passengers plunging to a hideous death in the East River a few years ago, or am I hallucinating that? ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2005, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/125-people-dangling-over-manhattan/319799/10 "2005-09-03T12:53:35Z")
> [@Eve](#): > > 125 People Dangling Over Manhattan! And they’re all banned Dopers? ---
**Author:** ![CantUseMyRealName](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@CantUseMyRealName](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CantUseMyRealName)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2005, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/125-people-dangling-over-manhattan/319799/11 "2005-09-03T13:02:23Z")
> [@Eve](#): > > Didn’t the tramline break, sending the tram and its passengers plunging to a hideous death in the East River a few years ago, or am I hallucinating that? i think that was nighthawks with sylvester stallone. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2005, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/125-people-dangling-over-manhattan/319799/12 "2005-09-03T13:31:56Z")
[Roosevelt Island Tram Stalls, Trapping 100 Riders for 2 Hours](http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/03/nyregion/03tram.html) (Free Reg required) … Once the engineer arrived, he was able to start the power generator quickly and get the tram moving. … All is well.