Let's Talk Facts About the Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern Merger

Start with our employees. She called our jobs-for-life commitment for union employees more marketing than substance. Here’s the truth: these are signed agreements with the unions that represent the men and women who move America’s freight. That is not a slogan. It is a commitment – in writing.

SMART-TD, the largest rail union in America, was the first to sign. Since then, we have reached similar agreements with the American Train Dispatchers Association, Brotherhood of Railway Carmen, International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, National Conference of Firemen and Oilers, United Supervisors Council of America and SMART Mechanical Division. More unions representing employees across the combined railroad support this combination than oppose it.

Now let’s talk about customers and competition. This is where the critics’ argument really falls apart.

Rail carries only 27% of the nation’s freight ton-miles. We compete every day with trucks and other modes. Today, when freight is handed from one railroad to another in the middle of the country, customers lose 24 to 48 hours and pay the cost of that delay. That is not how we win freight back from the highway.

Our combination creates a single operating plan from coast to coast. We expect it to move 2.1 million truckloads off congested highways each year, save shippers $3.5 billion annually and unlock competitive single-line service on more than 88,000 county-to-county lanes. Faster service. Fewer handoffs. One accountable railroad from origin to destination. That is what customers have been asking for.

And customers understand the opportunity. More than 500 customers have told the STB they support this combination, representing more than 30% of Union Pacific’s volume. They know what seamless service can mean for their businesses, their employees and the communities they serve.

You’ve heard plenty about our market share. Here are some facts that are not getting the same attention: BNSF has the largest market share of any Class I railroad today and would still be No. 2 after the merger. Where BNSF and Union Pacific compete head to head, BNSF already has 53% of the business. It holds 60% of the intermodal market, provides 94% of rail market access in South Dakota and moves 64% of all crude oil shipments.

Market share can be framed a lot of ways. Look only at rail and the numbers sound big. Look at the full U.S. transportation market, where railroads actually compete, and it is a very different story.

And remember, this is an end-to-end merger. Ninety-one percent of open locations are accessible to BNSF today – and that won’t change post-merger. The same is true in the East. Locations open to CSX on Norfolk Southern today will remain open to CSX after the merger. 

The opposition talks about Committed Gateway Pricing, or CGP, as if it is supposed to be the competitive solution. It is not. The end-to-end merger is what enhances competition. CGP goes a step further by creating competitive options for customers that do not otherwise directly benefit. It gives BNSF and CSX access to merger-based pricing.

Here is what the opposition is not explaining: CGP rates are based on actual traffic. That includes traffic receiving the benefits of single-line service and traffic we are winning back from trucks.

The opposition says less than 1% of traffic is eligible. Here is the number I will leave you with in the East: 45% of Union Pacific and CSX carload traffic is eligible for CGP. That gives CSX haulage-like service on thousands of rates.

Even with the overwhelming inherent benefits the combination will deliver, we went a step further to directly address competition concerns. Our supplemental filing added gateway pricing commitments, expanded shipper access and introduced new service protections. Our agreement with Canadian National creates more options. And where a small number of facilities could see their Class I rail choices reduced, we proposed written remedies, including access to another Class I railroad where feasible. The facts show more access, more accountability and stronger service options.

When I spent time with former Secretary Chavez-DeRemer at Union Pacific in January, she praised our investment in the skilled workforce that keeps supply chains moving. That is the same workforce this combination is built to grow.

A merger of this size should be thoroughly reviewed. But the debate should be based on the full record, not selective claims. Our commitments to employees are in writing. Our customer protections along with their support are in the merger filing. Read the record, ask the hard questions and judge this combination on the facts.