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Norfolk Southern COO John Orr Resigns After Eight-Month Tenure; Brian Barr Named Successor

Norfolk Southern announced June 1 that Chief Operating Officer John Orr resigned effective May 31, citing diminished job responsibilities under a contractual "good reason" clause. Orr was hired in March 2024 and promoted to Executive Vice President roughly eight months before his resignation. The company's SEC filing revealed operational changes materially reduced his duties. Brian Barr, Chief Mechanical Officer since September 2024, assumes the COO role effective June 1. Barr previously served as Senior Vice President Transportation at Union Pacific and Senior Vice President Network Planning at CSX. He began his railroad career as a craft dispatcher at Conrail in 1998. The leadership transition occurs amid ongoing merger discussions between Norfolk Southern and Union Pacific.