Opinion

Though Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern have yet to file their formal merger application with the Surface Transportation Board, kicking off a process expected to take up to 18 months,…

Reinvent Albany, a New York-based government watchdog organization, has released a new report showing that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) spent nearly $19 billion outside New York from 2011 to…

Democrat Robert E. Primus, fired Aug. 27 from his Senate-confirmed seat on the Surface Transportation Board (STB) by POTUS 47, wants his job back—and he is suing the Republican POTUS,…

Pricing continues to decelerate in the third quarter, running well below the survey’s average. Business growth expectations worsen, akin to COVID lows. Economic confidence skews negative. Shippers would move LSD…

We lower Q3 EPS estimates below current consensus for both Eastern carriers, while modestly raising estimates for UNP, driven by outperformance in IM and coal. Broader freight demand remains challenged…

On July 30, 2025, at the Surface Transportation Board, Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern filed a notice of intent to file an Application for authority to merge. The earliest the…

WATCHING WASHINGTON, RAILWAY AGE, OCTOBER 2025 ISSUE: The proposed marriage of Union Pacific (UP) and Norfolk Southern (NS) to form the first U.S. seamless Atlantic to Pacific transcontinental railroad is a…

There is a lot happening at Brightline Florida, the nation’s only private-sector intercity passenger railroad, which runs essentially hourly service between downtown Miami and Orlando International Airport (MCO). While we…

On Sept. 23, we reported on the funds transfer to operations that gave the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) and its riders in and around Philadelphia a two-year reprieve. The…

CSX President and CEO Joe Hinrichs, Railway Age’s 2025 Railroader of the Year, has been suddenly and unexpectedly railroaded by his own collectively myopic Board of Directors, and for no…

At Norfolk Southern (NS), railroading runs deep. It often spans generations of the same family. Across our network, you’ll find parents, children, grandchildren, and more who have all proudly called…

Current population data shows the fastest-growing areas in the U.S. are concentrated in the South and West. As cities in these regions grow, so does the need for more goods,…

Philadelphia’s SEPTA (Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority) is again operating its former level of service, despite recent threats of severe cutbacks. Riders are paying significantly more, but they are not forced…

Baylor Scott & White is one of the most notable hospital networks in the country, and its name originated from two legendary railroaders. That’s because BNSF predecessor railroads served as…

At a June 2025 U.S. House Subcommittee hearing on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials, Wabtec Corporation’s Executive Vice President and CTO Eric Gebhardt testified on behalf of RSI. His testimony highlighted…

While consolidation sentiment varied at the NEARS conference, there was a belief that the deal would get done. Comments on the economic backdrop were not positive, varying from sub-seasonal to…

When Amtrak was founded in 1971, there were no passenger trains running north of Massachusetts or the Empire Service line in New York State. The were no passenger trains at…

On Sept. 17, 2025, the BNSF Executive Train was seen heading east at Depew, N.Y. (just south of Buffalo) on CSX’s Chicago-New York main line, “giving folks a chance to…

SECDOT Duffy will not appreciate this: The American Public Transportation Association awarded its 2025 Innovation Award to the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) for the agency’s controversial—but effective and…

We believe a unified Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern sees potential upside to disclosed revenue synergies as we quantify the watershed opportunity. Our analysis of more than 4,000 watershed O-D…