Metra says Union Pacific improperly used confidential material in STB filing

Commuter train in push mode departs station as freight train moves away on adjacent track

WASHINGTON — Union Pacific misused confidential materials from ongoing negotiations in its most recent Surface Transportation Board filing on the ongoing UP-Metra dispute, Metra claims in a new regulatory filing. Metra’s Dec. 18 filing is the latest action in the dispute over terms of Metra commuter operations on three Chicago-area routes. It is in response […]

Read More…

BNSF CEO reiterates opposition to UP-NS merger (updated)

Woman standing in front of projector screen. BNSF CEO reiterates opposition to UP-NS merger

FORT WORTH, Texas — BNSF CEO Katie Farmer says the railroad’s initial review of the Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger application filed today “does not change BNSF’s opposition to the proposed merger.” CPKC and Canadian National have also issued statements on the filing, with CN saying the application “falls well below both the 2001 and old […]

Read More…

UP and NS say their merger will take 2 million trucks off the highway annually

Freight train passes under bridge as it rounds gentle curve on three-track main line.

OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern say their proposed transcontinental merger will take more than 2 million trucks off the road annually, boosting the combined system’s traffic by 1.4 million intermodal loads and 425,000 carloads. The nearly 12% growth projection is among the details included in the 6,692-page merger application the railroads filed […]

Read More…

Colorado steel mill halts rail shipments to BNSF and UP

BNSF Railway and Union Pacific have filed lawsuits against North America’s largest producer of rail, arguing that Orion Steel’s Rocky Mountain Steel Mills broke long-term supply deals by refusing to ship more rail unless the railroads agree to price increases of more than 50%. The railroads say Rocky Mountain’s halt in rail shipments threatens safety […]

Read More…

Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern to file merger application on Friday

OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern will file their merger application with federal regulators on Friday, the railroads said today. The document, which will be filed with the Surface Transportation Board, will allow the railroads to show how their combination will deliver economic benefits, enhance competition, and protect union jobs, the railroads said. […]

Read More…

Union Pacific to develop industrial park near Houston

Map of available proporty at new industrial park near Rosenberg, Texas

OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific has announced plans to develop a 2,000-acre industrial park outside Houston that will feature 1,300 acres of rail-served land. The Mainline Texas Industrial Park is just west of Rosenberg, Texas, and about 40 miles southwest of downtown Houston. It will be bordered on one side by the main line of […]

Read More…

Engineer and trackworker unions to oppose UP-NS merger

Two crew members stand next to their train as another train passes

The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen and the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division will oppose the Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger despite UP’s promises of lifetime job protection. “This debt-ridden tie-up won’t make rail more competitive with trucks as merger proponents claim,” BLET National President Mark Wallace said in a statement on Wednesday […]

Read More…

UP asks regulators to deny Metra request to set terms for use of commuter lines

Commuter train and freight train meet, as seen in view from bridge

WASHINGTON — Union Pacific has asked the Surface Transportation Board to deny Metra’s request that the board settle the terms of Metra operation on three UP lines, calling it an attempt to stall UP’s appeal of the STB decision granting trackage rights to the Chicago-area commuter railroad. In a Dec. 15 filing, UP says the […]

Read More…

Congressmen from Mississippi, Louisiana voice support for UP-NS merger

Train crossing bridge over canal

WASHINGTON — A trio of Southern Democratic congressmen have come out in favor of the Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger. Calling rail freight “vital to our states and the country’s economy,” a letter from U.S. Reps. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, and Troy Carter and Cleo Fields of Louisiana urged Surface Transportation Board Chairman Patrick Fuchs to […]

Read More…

Union Pacific completes expansion of Casa Grande, Ariz., yard

Elevated view of small yard at sunset

CASA GRANDE, Ariz. — Union Pacific has completed expansion of its Gasa Grande Yard, doubling capacity at the facility about 70 miles west of Tucson on the railroad’s Gila Subdivision. The project added four tracks and a new industrial lead, and included a powered switch, a new yard control point, and upgraded mainline signals. “The […]

Read More…

Union Pacific adds retiring CF Industries CEO to its board

OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific has appointed W. Anthony “Tony” Will to its board of directors, effective Jan. 5. Will has served as president, CEO and board member of CF Industries Holdings, a global manufacturer of hydrogen and nitrogen products, since 2014. He plans to retire Jan. 4, and will serve in an advisory role […]

Read More…

Winter woes plague some Amtrak trains in Midwest

Passenger train at station with circular roof on platform

CHICAGO — With temperatures hovering around zero over the weekend of Dec. 12-14, most Amtrak trains were able to leave Chicago on time, but a number were delayed more than two hours at their points of origin, while others had to contend with disabled freight trains. Meanwhile, service resumed through areas flooded earlier in the […]

Read More…