Candid Insights: Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern CEOs Outline How a Transcontinental Railroad Will Transform U.S. Freight

Onstage together, the two leaders shared candid insights into how merging their West Coast and East Coast networks will build a safer, more resilient and more efficient rail network – one positioned to better serve employees, customers and the nation’s economy.

For more than two decades, rail has steadily lost market share to trucking. Together, Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern represent less than 11% of the U.S. transportation market on a ton-mile basis.

Both CEOs were clear: standing still will not reverse that trend. What’s needed is a fundamentally different approach that reimagines how freight rail operates in the United States.

“An end-to-end railroad will force competitors to be better, to improve service or to adjust price – that’s competition,” Vena said.

A Single‑Line Network That Delivers What Customers Value

The Union Pacific–Norfolk Southern combination will create the nation’s first single‑line transcontinental railroad, connecting end‑to‑end networks into a seamless system stretching from the Atlantic to the Pacific.

“This artificial barrier called the Mississippi River limits our ability to grow in the Watershed and efficiently cross it,” George said. “That’s the catalyst here – a transcontinental network allows us to resume growth and recapture highway share.”

The marketplace has already made its preference clear: single‑line service outperforms interline service in every meaningful way – with higher market share, better reliability and more cost-effective rail service for customers.

According to a study by leading industry advisor Oliver Wyman, interline merchandise traffic moving between 1,000 and 1,500 miles costs on average 35% more than a comparable single-line move. When single-line service is available, the share of freight traveling by rail versus the highway is roughly two to three times greater than interline service.

By transforming roughly 10,000 existing lanes from interline to single‑line service, the combined network will:

• Reduce gateway touches and crosstown drays
• Improve equipment utilization and velocity
• Lower dwell and variability
• Deliver structurally lower costs and more predictable service

Designed for Simplicity, Planned for Stability

Beyond physical integration, the proposed combination will simplify how customers do business with rail by providing a single, accountable partner:

• One customer portal for end-to-end shipment visibility.
• One customer service number to call if any issues arise.
• One bill to pay at the conclusion of the move.
  

Just as important, both leaders emphasized that this merger is being carefully planned, learning from past industry challenges and executing the most thoughtful integration in rail history. From safety and technology to workforce and culture, the approach is deliberate, phased and designed to protect service while raising performance.

“We know we must get it right – we’ll go one step at a time, getting feedback from our customer advisory group and the field before moving to the next stage,” Vena said. “The first thing is to bring the operating plans together; it’s about optimizing so our customers get their product faster.”

Looking Ahead

The Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern combination is not about consolidation – it is about reinvigoration. By enabling faster, more reliable, lower‑cost service and opening new markets, America’s first transcontinental railroad will strengthen the U.S. supply chain and position freight rail to compete and grow for decades to come.