Facts About the Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern Combination

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Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern are combining to move America forward. The Surface Transportation Board (STB) will review a complete and compelling case about the benefits of this transaction for all stakeholders.

Here are the facts:
MYTH: The combination will limit options and hurt the economy.
FACT: The combination will fuel economic growth.
  • New single-line routes will expand rail options, particularly in watershed markets—areas within 500 miles of the Mississippi River that currently lack strong rail connections.
  • Seamless access to 10 international interchanges and approximately 100 ports will strengthen international trade routes and expand access to U.S.-made goods.
  • Every $1 invested in rail drives $2.50 in economic activity.1
MYTH: The combined company threatens rail jobs.
FACT: Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern are committed to protecting union jobs.
  • Those who have a union job when the merger is approved will continue to have one. SMART—TD members working in train and yardperson service will have guaranteed job protection for the length of their careers, subject to standard employment requirements.
  • By transforming the U.S. supply chain, the combination will unleash the industrial strength of American manufacturing, create new sources of economic growth and expand workforce opportunities.
  • Every rail job supports 3.9 additional U.S. jobs.1
MYTH: Customers won’t benefit from this combination.
FACT: Customers are expressing excitement about the numerous benefits the transaction will deliver.
  • For our customers, we expect this transaction to result in:
  • Faster service: Transit times will be shortened by several days through the elimination of car touches and interchanges.‍
  • Lower-cost options: Transcontinental rail service will reduce costs for customers, businesses and manufacturers by enabling more freight to shift to lower—cost rail.‍
  • Streamlined customer experience: Customers will receive single-line rate quotes and track freight through a unified system.‍
  • Industry-leading technology: Customer-focused technologies—including AI capabilities and real-time data integration – will be extended coast to coast.
    • Union Pacific seamlessly cutover its transportation management system to NetControl—making it the only railroad to modernize all core operating systems.
    • For our customers, we expect this transaction to result in:
MYTH: A larger railroad will compromise safety.
FACT: Safety is a core value and this combination will further our zero incidents goal.
  • Safer rails, safer roads: Shifting freight from trucks to trains reduces highway congestion and improves road safety. Rail is the safest, most efficient and sustainable way to move freight over land.5
    • One intermodal train removes up to 550 trucks from the highways.
    • One train uses one gallon of fuel to move a ton of freight 500 miles, creating a more sustainable, lower-cost supply chain.1
  • Improving safety for workers: The combined railroad will apply best practices from both programs to sustain lasting progress.
    • Union Pacific’s reportable personal injury rate and reportable derailment rate both improved in 2024, down by 23% and 20%, respectively, compared with 2023.2 Results in 2025 continue to show excellent improvement, with first quarter employee reportable rates matching the best-ever quarterly performance.4
    • Through technology, safety trainings and Speak Up practices, Norfolk Southern improved its FRA mainline accident rate by 40% in 2024, and reduced its overall reportable injury rate.3
MYTH: Service and safety levels will decline with fewer competitors.
FACT: Proven technologies will be expanded to improve both service and safety.
  • Building safer trains: Physics Train Builder predicts in—train forces to construct safer, more operationally efficient trains.
  • Protecting our people: Mobile NX, a semi-autonomous switching technology, reduces yard exposure for our workers, keeping them safe and streamlining operations.
  • Preventing problems: Digital Train Inspection Portals and Automated Track Geometry Measurement Systems help inspectors by detecting potential issues before the human eye—enabling employees to facilitate timely maintenance, enhancing safety and strengthening service reliability
MYTH: The combination will limit freight choices and raise rates.
FACT: America’s 1st transcontinental railroad is overwhelmingly in the public interest and will enhance competition.
  • All customers will benefit from a coast-to-coast rail network, gaining faster service and expanded access to new and existing markets. Fewer than 10 customer locations will experience a change in multi-rail connectivity.
  • We expect businesses and consumers nationwide to see a reduction in costs as rail becomes a faster, more efficient, more reliable and more accessible way to ship goods.
  • This combination will help win back U.S. freight volume and jobs by competing more effectively with Canadian transcontinental railroads.