Keolis won an eight-year contract for the operation and maintenance of West Covina, Calif.’s Foothill Transit, effective July 1, 2017.

Under the terms of the contract, Keolis will be responsible for operating and maintaining local fixed- and express-route transit services, including into downtown Los Angeles. The contract will require Keolis to maintain and manage a fleet of 139 vehicles, including 14 fully-electric Proterra buses.

“We’re looking forward to our new partnership with Keolis,” said Doran Barnes, executive director of Foothill Transit. “Their international experience with technology-based solutions will be an asset as we move to deploy our new CAD/AVL system and add to our electric bus fleet.”

In announcing the selection, Foothill Transit highlighted a number of differentiators that led to the selection of Keolis, including a well-designed staffing plan; innovative approaches to service delivery; strong CAD/AVL system transition experience; demonstrated improvements in on-time performance at other agencies; and experience with implementing programs and best practices to ensure the highest levels of fleet maintenance and vehicle appearance.