Vena Highlights Big Boy Tour, Merger Benefits on Fox Business
● The Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern combination will create America’s first seamless transcontinental freight railroad. Eliminating handoffs between eastern and western railroads will reduce delays and give customers faster, more reliable single-line service from coast to coast.
● A stronger national rail network will help American businesses compete more effectively, while simplifying shipping and preserving union jobs. The combination will improve supply chain efficiency and lower shipping costs. Vena reiterated Union Pacific’s commitment to job protection for union employees.
● Big Boy No. 4014’s coast-to-coast tour reinforces the vision behind the combination. The historic tour celebrates America’s 250th anniversary while utilizing the combined rail network that links communities and ports across the country.
Key Takeaways:
- A seamless transcontinental network expands freight options. The combination would create America’s first single-line coast-to-coast railroad with new lanes, faster routing and broader market access.
- Single-line service reduces supply chain friction. Fewer handoffs and more direct routing are designed to improve speed, reliability and efficiency for long-distance freight movement.
- The proposed combination strengthens American competitiveness.The applicationhighlights supply chain growth, new union jobs, and expanded rail capacity as long-term economic benefits.
With Big Boy No. 4014 serving as the backdrop at Steamtown National Historic Site in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena joined “Mornings with Maria” on Fox Business to discuss the world’s largest operating steam locomotive’s coast-to-coast tour celebrating America’s 250th anniversary. The journey has already drawn more than 1 million spectators along the route.
Vena used the moment to underscore rail’s longstanding role in connecting the country and supporting economic growth, while also emphasizing the benefits of the Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger. He reinforced how single-line service will lower costs and expand options for customers.
“We now have to hand off a rail car to another carrier every time you cross the Mississippi,” Vena said. “We want to move American products — steel, copper, grain — in a much more seamless and faster way to make American companies more efficient and compete better against the world.”