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Why merge — and why merge now? Those were leadoff questions last week at a virtual salon where four industry veterans dissected the forces behind Union Pacific’s proposed acquisition of Norfolk Southern, the untested regulatory road ahead, and the potential ripple effects for shippers, communities, and competitors. Rick Paterson, an analyst with Loop Capital Markets, […]
WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board today proposed a procedural schedule it will follow as part of its review of Union Pacific’s $85 billion acquisition of Norfolk Southern. The schedule the board is proposing slightly tweaks the schedule that UP and NS outlined in July. The railroads had proposed reducing the amount of time the […]
The SMART-TD union today said it would back Union Pacific’s acquisition of Norfolk Southern under an agreement that ensures job security for rank and file members who work in train and yardmaster service. Union Pacific said SMART-TD employees would not face involuntary furloughs as a result of the merger and would have job protection for […]
Trains Turntable: Commentary from Matthew K. Rose Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern railroads have proposed a merger — what could possibly be wrong with a transcontinental railroad? First, there exists no financial crisis in the rail industry, like that which drove the significant consolidation in the freight rail industry over the last 30 years. The […]
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Friday said he approved of the proposed $85 billion merger between Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern. In Oval Office remarks reported by White House media, Trump said the tie-up that would create the first transcontinental freight railroad “sounds good to me. Union Pacific is a great railroad.” Trump also […]
Back in the day when railroads were squeezed under the thumb of the Interstate Commerce Commission and saddled with money-losing passenger service and dying branch lines, Class I railroads went through merger after merger to fend off financial collapse. The goal of those combinations was to eliminate duplicate routes, yards, shops, and headquarters in the […]
ATLANTA — Norfolk Southern’s Digital Train Inspection (DTI) portals have been recognized in Fast Company’s 2025 Innovation by Design Awards, receiving an honorable mention in the Artificial Intelligence Design category. It’s the first time a railroad has earned a spot in the business technology magazine’s annual awards. “This recognition highlights how our innovation is transforming […]
EAST PALESTINE, Ohio — A recent, brief update on the Norfolk Southern website — nsmakingitright.com — announced that the railroad has completed efforts to cleanup and restore the site of the Feb. 3, 2023, train derailment and chemical release. Norfolk Southern did not issue a press release regarding the milestone, nor were any additional statements […]
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena and Norfolk Southern CEO Mark George first broached the possibility of a transcontinental merger during an otherwise routine phone call on Dec. 18, the railroads disclosed in a preliminary shareholder proxy filed on Tuesday. The proxy form provides a detailed timeline for their merger discussions, including the […]
WASHINGTON — The Rail Customer Coalition, which represents the manufacturing, agriculture, and energy industries, has told federal regulators that Union Pacific’s proposed acquisition of Norfolk Southern will stifle rail competition and drive up costs. “Past rail mergers have shown what happens when consolidation goes unchecked: service suffers, costs increase, and jobs disappear,” the coalition wrote […]
Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern today became the latest railroads to partner on new interline intermodal service. UP and NS today said they would launch domestic service linking Louisville, Ky., with Los Angeles and Lathrop, Calif.; Seattle; Portland, Ore.; Salt Lake City and Houston beginning in mid-October. The railroads will exchange the traffic via steel-wheel […]
President Donald Trump, in an appearance on Fox & Friends this morning, praised Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena and said the railroader offered suggestions on where the administration should call up the National Guard to fight urban crime. Vena met with Trump and other administration officials at the White House on Tuesday regarding UP’s $85 […]
