Union Pacific floats transcon merger trial balloons: Analysis

Union Pacific appears to be using a familiar playbook that large, publicly traded companies trot out when considering mergers and acquisitions: Send up trial balloons and see how they fly. These trial balloons let management gauge market reaction, political sentiment, and how the media might spin the story, all without committing to a deal. They […]

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News photo: A ‘Big’ deal in Colorado

Large steam locomotive surrounded by spectators

GREELEY, Colo. — Union Pacific’s Big Boy began its only scheduled trip of 2025 today (July 17), heading from its home base in Cheyenne, Wyo., to Denver as part of a round trip for the annual Cheyenne Frontier Days rodeo. The 4-8-8-4 is accompanied by the railroad’s Abraham Lincoln diesel, No. 1616. Today’s servicing stop […]

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Report: Investment firm advising Union Pacific on potential merger

Freight train with yellow locomotive

Union Pacific is working with Morgan Stanley investment bankers to provide guidance on the potential acquisition of another Class I railroad, the online publication Semafor reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. UP and Morgan Stanley declined to comment to the media outlet. CSX and Norfolk Southern stock prices surged on the news, […]

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BNSF and UP settle dispute over Salt Lake City trackage rights (updated)

WASHINGTON — BNSF Railway and Union Pacific settled their Salt Lake City trackage rights dispute yesterday prior to a scheduled meeting with federal regulators. The deal allowed BNSF to begin international intermodal service between Southern California ports and a new intermodal terminal on Salt Lake Garfield & Western Railway. In a filing posted on the […]

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BNSF and UP to meet with regulators over trackage rights dispute

WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board has ordered BNSF Railway and Union Pacific to participate in a technical conference next week regarding their dispute over new BNSF international intermodal trains that would serve Salt Lake City via UP trackage rights. The virtual meeting, which will be held on July 15, will not be open to […]

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Classic Trains Film Archive | Riding on the Norfolk & Western and Grand Trunk Western, J. David Ingles Reel 0051

Classic Trains Film Archive | Riding on the Norfolk & Western and Grand Trunk Western, J. David Ingles Reel 0051 – Ride trains on the Norfolk & Western, see colorful operations around Kansas City, and explore little-known lines in western Illinois with J. David Ingles. Plus, experience a Michigan snowstorm from the train and ride […]

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NTSB releases preliminary report on UP fatality in Texas

Diagram and aerial photo of fatal sideswipe accident at rail yard.

WASHINGTON — A conductor who made an incorrect cut during switching, fouling a main track, was killed when a car he was riding on sideswiped the car fouling the main during a subsequent move, the National Transportation Safety Board said in its preliminary report on a fatal accident that occurred June 9, 2025, at Union […]

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BNSF and Union Pacific clash over new Salt Lake City intermodal service

WASHINGTON — BNSF Railway wants to launch international double-stack service this week between Southern California and Salt Lake City via trackage rights over Union Pacific’s former Western Pacific route through the Feather River Canyon. Not so fast, UP says. UP says that BNSF has not provided sufficient notice so that UP can hire and train […]

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STB backs CPKC in grain export dispute with Union Pacific

Grain train led by red locomotive

WASHINGTON — Canadian Pacific Kansas City can send Midwestern grain to export at the ports of Houston and Galveston via haulage rights over Union Pacific south of Beaumont, Texas, the Surface Transportation Board said today. Union Pacific in 2023 had sought to block CPKC’s use of Kansas City Southern’s so-called South End haulage rights, which […]

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CPKC takes second-quarter volume crown

Single locomotive in CPKC paint scheme crossing bridge

Canadian Pacific Kansas City was the fastest-growing railroad in the second quarter, with its overall volume up 6%. CPKC’s industry-leading growth was due to double-digit increases in intermodal (14%), grain (16%), and coal (10%). Union Pacific ranked No. 2 for the quarter, with its volume up 4% overall, led by a 31% increase in coal […]

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UK investment analyst seeks paths to Class I mergers

With only six Class I freight railroads remaining and stringent merger rules set by the Surface Transportation Board’s 2001 framework, the consensus largely held that the window for large-scale transactions was closed. Any potential merger, under these rules, must not only demonstrably enhance competition but also clearly articulate public benefits — typically improved service or […]

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Coos Bay intermodal port project receives $100 million in state backing

Map of Oregon port project

COOS BAY, Ore. — The Oregon legislature has approved $100 million in funding for the Port of Coos Bay project to develop a new ship-to-rail container terminal, the port announced this week. The Pacific Coast Intermodal Port would see containers loaded directly from ships on to trains, which would then move via the port’s Coos […]

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