Office of Rail and Road (ORR) Chief Executive John Larkinson has announced his retirement from his position.
Larkinson will leave his post at the end of April 2026, with the Chair and Board set to begin the process of recruiting a successor imminently.
Chief Executive, John Larkinson, said:I feel exceptionally fortunate to have played my part in the wider industry and for 20 years at the ORR and particularly to be ORR’s Chief Executive. It has been a great privilege to lead ORR through what has at times been a challenging, but ultimately overwhelmingly rewarding, period as the rail and road sectors recovered from the pandemic and as the rail sector is being reformed.
There is never a perfect time to move on, but most of my tenure as Chief Executive has been against a backdrop of rail reform, and I feel that the introduction of the Railways Bill into Parliament is an appropriate time to depart. I want to give a new Chief Executive the opportunity and the time to continue the process of transforming the ORR into its new roles set out in the Railways Bill and support the creation of Great British Railways.
I would like to thank Declan, the Board, my leadership team and all the staff at ORR for their help and support over the last seven years. As an independent and expert body, with a strong commitment to transparency, the ORR has played a crucial role in the development of the rail and road sectors, as it will continue to do so into the future.
