Dick Fearn

Fearn has almost 45 years’ experience in the rail industry, having joined British Rail as a railway traffic student in 1973. He climbed the ranks by holding various operational management roles throughout the 1970s and 1980s, until becoming Divisional Director of the Thames and Chiltern Division of BR’s Network SouthEast business sector in the early 1990s.

After privatisation, Fearn was appointed MD of the newly formed train operator South Eastern, and later joined Railtrack as its zone director for the North West and then the Midlands.

In 2003, Fearn left the UK to join Irish Rail as its Chief Operating Officer, prior to his elevation to Chief Executive in 2006. He held that post until his retirement in 2013, when he returned to southeast England to take up various non-executive part-time roles, including as an advisor to the Department for Transport.

He is currently Chairman of the Bluebell Railway in a voluntary capacity, and a member of RAIL’s National Rail Awards judging panel.