FirstGroup, Plc, the Aberdeen, Scotland-based corporate parent of First Student, Greyhound Lines and First Transit, recently announced that Tim O’Toole resigned from its board and his CEO position, shortly after it posted a fiscal-year loss of $437 million.
Wolfhart Hauser will serve as Executive Chairman until a replacement is named. Matthew Gregory was also appointed as Interim COO, and is continuing as CFO. The process to select a new CEO is still being conducted.
New FirstGroup Chairman Wolfhart Hauser said, “On behalf of the board I would like to thank Tim for his distinguished leadership of the company since 2010. During that time, the Group has reinvested in its businesses, restored free cash generation and substantially strengthened its balance sheet. The Group is now a more stable and resilient enterprise, with a growing ability to capitalise on its leading positions in diverse transport markets.”
Tim O’Toole said, “The time is right for me to step aside. [The financial] results clear the way for the new approach sought by our chairman and the board. I should like to thank the 100,000 employees who work so hard to deliver for our customers every day. It has been a privilege to work with them.”
About FirstGroup Plc
FirstGroup Plc (LSE: FGP.L) is a leading transport operator in the UK and North America. With £6.4 billion in revenue and around 100,000 employees, it transported 2.1 billion passengers last year. Each of the FirstGroup five divisions is a leader in its field: in North America, First Student is the largest provider of student transportation with a fleet of 42,000 yellow school buses; First Transit is one of the largest providers of outsourced transit management and contracting services; while Greyhound is the only nationwide operator of scheduled intercity coaches. In the UK, First Bus is one of Britain’s largest bus operators, transporting 1.6 million passengers a day, and First Rail is one of the country’s largest and most experienced rail operators, carrying more than 260 million passengers last year.
