City of Ottawa announces new head of OC Transpo

Rene Amilcar isthe City of Ottawa's new general manager of transit services, replacing longtime municipal employee andOC Transpoboss John Manconi who is retiring at the end of this month.

Amilcar, who officially starts Oct. 18,has been selected after "an extensive, international executive search" to fill the position, according to a city memo sent Monday to Ottawa's mayor and city council.

She isan industrial engineer who worked at Pratt & Whitney Canada, Nortel Networksand Montreal's public transit organization,Socit de Transport deMontral(STM). She was firstdirector of bus maintenance, according to the memo, before being promoted toexecutive director of bus services in 2014.

"It was in [Montreal] that Rene first earned a reputation as an exemplary servant leader with a strong capacity to understand operational issues and manage and engage multiple teams," wrote city manager Steve Kanellakos.

"I look forward to seeing what innovations Rene will bring from her experience at the STM."

Amilcar was also a bus committee chair of the International Association of Public Transitand received an award for outstanding leadership from theFederation of Quebec Chambers of Commerce in 2018. She currently sits on three boards: Concours musical international de Montral,Centre patronal SST andthe Montreal Student Foundation.

Manconi, after a 32-yearcareer with the City of Ottawa, leaveshis post Sept. 30 amid a couple of recentLRT derailmentscurrently placingpressure on the department and the city.

Amilcar's informal transition has already started and the city's rail director Michael Morgan will lead the department overseeing a "safe return to service" of Confederation Line 1 during this time, reads the memo.

"The LRTfilewill remain a top priority in my office both during the transitionand afterwards," said Kanellakos.