Network Rail and ARL directors swap jobs for 18 months

Two senior railway officials from Network Rail and Arriva Rail London (ARL) have taken part in a temporary job swap.

Matt Pocock, who is currently ARL's operations director, will replace Gunnar Lindahl as Network Rail's Wessex route operations director on an 18-month secondment.

In turn, Gunnar Lindahl will replace Matt Pocock as Arriva Rail London's operations director for the same period of time.

The moves are due to take place in August 2023, and although this is the first time that senio staff have swapped jobs between the two companies, both hope that there will be further opportunities in the future.

In a joint statement the companies said: “This partnership between ARL and Network Rail is not only a demonstration of both organisations investing in and developing their teams, but recognition of the need for track and train to work more closely than ever before, as the rail industry moves towards Great British Railways (GBR) where infrastructure and train operations will work as one, under a single guiding mind.”

Pocock joined Arriva in 2012, since when he has worked at ARL from the beginning of the current concession in 2016, initially as part of the mobilisation team and then as performance director. He became operations director in 2021. 

Lindahl has been with Network Rail since 2017 having previously spent four years working for London Underground starting as a Graduate Trainee in 2013. He joined the Wessex route as operations director in 2020, having also led the corporate response to the industrial action over the last year.