Clare Gilmartin, chief executive since 2014, steered the company through its £1.7bn stock market listing last year, and will be succeeded by chief operating officer Jody Ford in February.

The 45-year-old mother of three said the decision was ‘a personal one’ and added: ‘After seven years at the helm the time has come for me to spend more time with my family.’

Trainline shares fell 12.9pc or 43p to 290p on the news – leaving them well below the 350p listing price and peak of over 550p early this year.

Gilmartin sold £16m of shares when it went public and £3m last month. She still holds a 1.6pc stake worth £23m.

After handing over to Ford, who started less than a month ago, Gilmartin will stay on as a senior adviser without a seat on the board.

Her departure comes as the rail industry has been thrown into crisis by Covid. Passenger numbers are around a third below normal levels after diving by 95pc at the height of lockdown.The industry has effectively been nationalised to keep it running and a full recovery could take years.

Last month Trainline said UK sales in the six months to August 31 were 15pc of last year’s levels and it expected to make underlying losses of up to £19m. Before the crisis it was selling more than 200 tickets a minute on its website and smartphone apps - and in its last full year made £3.7bn from sales.

Gilmartin has spoken about the need for more women in boardrooms and credited flexible working hours for helping her balance work and family life. She was Ebay’s European boss until she joined Trainline in 2014. Ford also worked for Ebay and was recently the chief executive of online photo printing firm Photobox.

© Daily Mail