Railway Age has named Norfolk Southern Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer John Orr 2026 Railroader of the Year, the publication’s 63rd such award.
“John Orr is an accomplished fourth-generation railroader who began his career as a craft railroader and union leader, bringing decades of hands-on experience to his leadership,” said Railway Age Editor-in-Chief William C. Vantuono. “He has held a range of operational and management roles throughout his career and is known across the industry as a proven transformation leader with a strong track record of implementing scheduled railroading to achieve safety and service excellence. Since being appointed Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer in 2024 at Norfolk Southern, John has led railway operations—including safety, transportation, network planning, engineering, and mechanical—with a clear focus on performance, accountability and culture. His positive impact can be seen in multiple key performance metrics. These include the lowest FRA Personal Injury ratio at NS in a decade; a double-digit improvement in FRA Reportable Train Accidents; leading the rail industry in FRA Main Line Train Accident rates for 2024; improved car-miles per day, decreased dwell, and increased velocity across the network. Building on this momentum, NS recently reached its all-time quarterly record for fuel efficiency and continues to deliver network and service enhancements to help customers win in their markets. John’s ‘PSR 2.0’ approach has driven rapid and sustainable improvements in service reliability and operating efficiency. He is committed to building long-term leadership capability across the organization, championing the launch of the Thoroughbred Academy, which is helping embed a culture of safety, service and operational excellence across all levels of the railroad. By investing in people and process, he is developing the next generation of railroaders benefitting employees, customers and rail-served communities.”
“I am deeply honored to be recognized among the exceptional leaders who have shaped our industry,” John Orr said. “This recognition reflects not only my personal journey, but the collective achievements of the entire Norfolk Southern team. These are railroaders who make our value of safety the standard and shared responsibility every day, and whose commitment to operational excellence and continuous improvement drives our progress. I am also profoundly grateful to my family, whose unwavering support and more than 400 years of combined service to the railway industry have instilled in me a deep respect for perseverance, teamwork, and integrity.”
John Orr will be profiled in Railway Age’s January 2026 issue. He will be presented with the award at the traditional dinner hosted by the Western Railway Club at the Union League Club of Chicago on March 10, 2026.
Railway Age’s Railroader of the Year Award
The Railroader of the Year Award was started by Modern Railroads magazine in 1964 as the “Man of the Year” award. Railway Age acquired Modern Railroads in 1991 and has presented the award annually since 1992.
Recipients under Modern Railroads
- 1964: D. W. Brosnan, Southern Railway System
- 1965: Stuart T. Saunders, Pennsylvania Railroad Co.
- 1966: Stuart T. Saunders, Pennsylvania Railroad Co.
- 1967: Louis W. Menk, Northern Pacific Railway
- 1968: William B. Johnson, Illinois Central Railroad
- 1969: John W. Barriger, Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad
- 1970: John S. Reed, Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway
- 1971: Jervis Langdon, Jr., Penn Central Transportation Co.
- 1972: Charles Luna, United Transportation Union
- 1973: James B. Germany, Southern Pacific Transportation Co.
- 1974: L. Stanley Crane, Southern Railway System
- 1975: Frank E. Barnett, Union Pacific Railroad
- 1976: Dr. William J. Harris, Jr., Association of American Railroads
- 1977: Edward G. Jordan, Conrail
- 1978: Robert M. Brown, Union Pacific Railroad
- 1979: Theodore C. Lutz, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority
- 1980: John G. German, Missouri Pacific Railroad Co.
- 1981: Lawrence Cena, Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway
- 1982: A. Paul Funkhouser, Family Lines Rail System
- 1983: L. Stanley Crane, Conrail
- 1984: Hays T. Watkins, CSX Corp.
- 1985: John L. Cann, Canadian National
- 1986: Raymond C. Burton, Jr., Trailer Train Co.
- 1987: Willis B. Kyle, Kyle Railways
- 1988: Darius W. Gaskins, Jr., Burlington Northern
- 1989: W. Graham Claytor, Jr., Amtrak
- 1990: Arnold B. McKinnon, Norfolk Southern Corp.
- 1991: Mike Walsh, Union Pacific Railroad
Recipients under Railway Age
- 1992: William H. Dempsey, Association of American Railroads
- 1993: Raymond C. Burton, Jr., TTX Co.
- 1994: L. S. “Jake” Jacobson, Copper Basin Railway
- 1995: Edwin Moyers, Southern Pacific Transportation Co.
- 1996: Robert D. Krebs, AT&SF, and Gerald Grinstein, Burlington Northern
- 1997: Paul M. Tellier, Canadian National
- 1998: David R. Goode, Norfolk Southern
- 1999: Edward A. Burkhardt, Wisconsin Central Transportation Co.
- 2000: The Railroad Worker (“Railroader of the Century”)
- 2001: Michael R. Haverty, Kansas City Southern Railway
- 2002: E. Hunter Harrison, CN/Illinois Central
- 2003: Richard K. Davidson, Union Pacific Railroad
- 2004: Robert J. Ritchie, Canadian Pacific Railway
- 2005: David R. Goode, Norfolk Southern
- 2006: Richard F. Timmons, American Short Line & Regional Railroad Association
- 2007: William E. Wimmer, Union Pacific Railroad
- 2008: Stephen C. Tobias, Norfolk Southern
- 2009: Michael J. Ward, CSX
- 2010: Matthew K. Rose, BNSF
- 2011: Wick Moorman, Norfolk Southern
- 2012: David L. Starling, Kansas City Southern
- 2013: James R. Young, Union Pacific
- 2014: Joseph H. Boardman, Amtrak
- 2015: E. Hunter Harrison, Canadian Pacific
- 2016: Carl R. Ice, BNSF Railway
- 2017: Thomas F. Prendergast, New York MTA
- 2018: John C. Hellmann, Genesee & Wyoming
- 2019: Jean-Jacques Ruest, CN
- 2020: Patrick J. Ottensmeyer, Kansas City Southern
- 2021: Keith Creel, Canadian Pacific
- 2022: Keith Creel, Canadian Pacific; Patrick J.Ottensmeyer, Kansas City Southern
- 2023: Katie Farmer, BNSF Railway
- 2024: Tracy Robinson, CN
- 2025: Joe Hinrichs, CSX
- 2026: John Orr, Norfolk Southern
