- One word to describe yourself: Individualization
- Alma Mater: Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education
- Favorite book: “But What If We're Wrong? Thinking About the Present As If It Were the Past” by Chuck Klosterman
- Favorite hobby(s): Traveling and working out
- Fun fact about yourself: I'm all ears.
- Favorite route you have ever ridden or frequent (and why): Route 12 from Greensboro Transit Agency because it is only a five minute walk from where I live and a two minute walk to work.
Omar A. Oliveros started at Keolis eight years ago as a paratransit manager, working up to fixed route manager and to where he now serves as general manager.
While he was a paratransit manager, his team underwent an operation efficiency review, which he met with support and shared what his team needed to succeed. Because of his openness and willingness to improve, the results were more impressive than any other trend in the last five years.
The results included: On-time performance started at the mid 80 percent range and then hit and sustained the stretch target of 95 percent; productivity improved from about 1.6 trips per hour to 1.9 trips per hour in four months; and new cancelation and no-show policies reduced no-shows by 98 percent.
During this time, Oliveros was part of the leadership team that won the Florida Public Transportation Association’s 2014 Outstanding System of the Year and Keolis’ 2014 President’s Safety Award.
His efforts during the review helped him secure his position as general manager. In 2018, he was awarded Keolis’ 2018 Outstanding Safety Award for demonstrating year over year improvements in reducing accidents and injuries. Additionally, part of the leadership team was awarded the Florida Public Transportation Association’s 2018 Outstanding Public Transportation System Achievement Award.
He reduced the number of road fails (increased the miles between breakdowns) in his operation by reorganizing his shop and reducing total headcount at the same time. He was instrumental in a state-of-the-art ITS Technology deployment, including web-based CAD/AVL, mobile video surveillance and system configuration from ETA (Spot) that allows train commuters to track their bus connection before arriving at the terminal. He also introduced computer dispatch software (DCS) that improved the system’s on-time performance.
His commitment to customer satisfaction is reflected in the monetary incentives his employees earned from his client for excellent Customer Surveys for two years in a row by significantly reducing passenger valid complaints per 100,000 from 16.32 in 2017 to 7.31 in 2018-2019.
“How we move around cities is reshaping not only social dynamics but also the quality of life for millions of people. Transit is a rapidly evolving industry and the need to explore new technologies and business models is essential to preserve a cost-efficient and quality transit system to existing riders, but that will also attract new ones.”
“To be effective you need to be open, listen, and learn from your customers, staff and peers. They can change your perspective.”
