As had been speculated, Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern on Dec. 19 filed their merger application with the Surface Transportation Board: Union Pacific Corporation—Control—Norfolk Southern Corporation, Docket No. FD 36873. UP and NS entered into their merger agreement on July 29, 2025, in which UP is the acquiring carrier. They described the proposed transaction as an “end-to-end combination [that] will enhance competition and deliver broad public benefits.” The four-volume, 6,700 page application—described as a “Christmas present” by one analyst participating in the mostly scripted announcement webcast (though probably not for anyone required to study it over the Holidays)—“provides comprehensive and compelling new details” as well as “a record-breaking 2,000 letters of support from stakeholders, joining shareholders at both companies who cast votes that were 99% in favor of the merger.” UP and NS expect the transaction to be completed by “early 2027” (February of that year has been suggested). STB went as far as to deploy UP-NS Merger Resources, an area of its website dedicated to the merger application. The merger, now dubbed “The Great Connection” (a slogan strongly suggestive of a deliberate attempt to appeal to POTUS 47’s frequent use of the word “great” and its variants, i.e., “Make America Great Again,” “I’m the greatest President in history,” etc., etc., etc.) has lofty goals. (Download Executive Summary below). UP and NS claim it will: “Connect the United States from coast to coast, transforming 10,000 existing lanes from interline service into faster, more efficient single-line service—eliminating time-consuming handoffs between railroads.…
