Nov 6, 2018
Juan Carlos Rivera is one of the friendliest and most charismatic people that you will meet. Prior to RTA, Juan Carlos was a branch manager in the banking world. He decided to come to RTA for the opportunity to spend more time with his family. As head of ADA registration and the Telephone Information Center, he gives his all to manage his team and serve the Greater Cleveland area in a friendly and efficient manner.
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 ensures the opportunity for both seniors and people with disabilities to have access to public transportation that does not follow a fixed route, which we refer to as Paratransit Service. ADA registration is responsible for this process until the application is sent for review and/or functional testing. From there, the ADA approved customer can get their Paratransit ID and begin using the service. On average, ADA registration processes approximately 650 applications per month, with 95% approval. While ADA application denials are few and far between, they do happen. An appeals process has been set up to gather more information.
Looking at his other area of expertise, the Telephone Information Center is the main hub for information on and about RTA. This service offers information about the city, aids in trip planning, fare information, complaint and commendation processing, and much more. Being bilingual, Juan Carlos is able to help many Spanish speaking callers easily access information on RTA products and services. This department once received an average of 11,000 calls per week, but over the last year customers are using available tools such as Transit App and completing their own trip plans on the website, which has decreased incoming calls to around 5,500 per week. Juan Carlos manages a staff of nine telephone operators, who work on a rotating schedule six days per week. He states that all of the hard work of his department would not be possible without the internal communications in the company. Without the flow of information, his staff would not be able to be as effective as they are. In the seven years since Juan Carlos has been at RTA, he has decreased the wait time from I minute and 30 seconds to 50 seconds, average talk time is down to 1 minute 15 seconds, and developed the current complaint process that has streamlined response rate on complaints in the system to 4 to 8 days.
Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Juan Carlos moved to Ohio to attend Kent State University. Each career path has led him to over 25 years combined experience of customer service, making him more than qualified to lead these departments. To relax on vacation, he enjoys traveling back to his home in Puerto Rico each year to visit his friends and family.
