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UP, NS Clear Hurdle; STB Accepts Application

[ June 4, 2026   //   ]

Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern have cleared an initial regulatory hurdle in their proposed merger to create the nation’s first transcontinental freight railroad, after the Surface Transportation Board accepted the carriers’ revised application for consideration while simultaneously pausing proceedings pending additional information.

The railroads said May 28 that the STB’s decision moves the proposal into a merits-based review process. However, regulators also determined that portions of the revised filing remain “unclear or underdeveloped” and ordered the companies to provide supplemental information before the review can proceed. Environmental review and other proceedings have been placed in abeyance while the additional material is submitted and evaluated. The STB has directed the carriers to file the requested information by July 27.

Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena said the companies remain confident the merger will deliver lower transportation costs and improved service for shippers.

“The time is right for a more competitive U.S. rail network,” Norfolk Southern President and CEO Mark George said in a statement.

The proposed combination, valued at approximately US$85 billion, would unite Union Pacific’s western network with Norfolk Southern’s eastern system, creating a single-line railroad spanning much of the U.S. The companies contend the transaction would improve service by eliminating interchange delays, shift an estimated 2.1 million truckloads annually from highways to rail and generate US$3.5 billion in annual supply chain savings. They also project creation of roughly 1,200 net new union jobs within three years of the merger’s completion.

The filing marks the second attempt by the carriers to secure STB review. In January, regulators rejected the original application as incomplete, citing missing information related to market-share projections, competitive impacts and other requirements under the board’s post-2001 major merger rules, which require applicants to demonstrate that a merger will enhance competition rather than merely avoid harming it.

Opposition remains significant. Rival railroads, shipper groups and several labor organizations have argued the merger could reduce competition, increase transportation costs and concentrate market power among fewer carriers. Regulators specifically requested additional information regarding competition, market-share projections and downstream effects of the transaction.

If the application ultimately advances, the STB’s review process could extend for more than a year. The companies currently expect the transaction to close in mid-2027, later than earlier projections.

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