CEO Jim Vena Highlights Rail’s Future at Chicago Traffic Club

About 25% of America’s freight trains move through Chicago, with nearly $3 trillion in total freight flowing through the region each year.  

Vena said today’s U.S. rail network requires unnecessary handoffs that can slow service and increase costs for customers. He compared it to air travel: no one wants to fly from Los Angeles to New York and be forced to stop at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport and buy a separate ticket to depart from Chicago Midway International Airport when a nonstop option is available. The Union Pacific–Norfolk Southern combination will create that nonstop service for freight, enabling seamless single-line service that removes handoffs, shortens transit times and lowers costs that will flow through to consumer prices, making American goods more affordable.

He said the benefits are clear: faster, more reliable service and a network that helps customers get products to market more efficiently. Vena also emphasized the combination will support employees, with a commitment that any union employee with a job at the time of the merger will have one for life and grow the workforce to support additional volume.

The proposed combination reflects a forward-looking vision to strengthen supply chains, improve competitiveness and position American freight rail to win in the years ahead.

Please review Union Pacific’s cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements.