WASHINGTON, D.C. –– Richard J. Kloster was sworn in today as the fourth member of the Surface Transportation Board. Mr. Kloster was confirmed by the Senate on May 18, 2026, for a term ending December 31, 2028. Kloster, a Republican, was nominated by POTUS 47 in September 2025.
WASHINGTON, D.C. –– The Fertilizer Institute (TFI) and the Alliance for Chemical Distribution (ACD) have filed separate letters with the Surface Transportation Board (STB) that respectively request all six Class I CEOs
WASHINGTON, D.C. –– In the opinion of the late President Ronald Regan, “The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help.’” Among railroaders, the phrase rang painfully and expensively true for most of the 20th century when the former Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) regulated railroads into the years the locust hath eaten. Things they have been a changin’ under ICC successor Surface Transportation Board (STB).
WASHINGTON, D.C. –– This week, the American Chemistry Council (ACC) released a statement supporting the Surface Transportation Board’s recent proposal to promote reciprocal switching.
WASHINGTON, D.C. –– The Surface Transportation Board has rejected the first version of the UP+NS merger application.
NEW YORK –– We hosted a former Class I CEO to review the recent Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger application. He sees a very strong filing with acceptance likely though not until 2027. The CGP (Committed Gateway Pricing) solution enhances competition and should pass STB’s test. The network plan supports disclosed truck conversion opportunities in transcontinental and watershed lanes. Competitors are likely compelled to adapt and could eventually propose their own combinations.
NEW YORK –– ‘Twas one week before Christmas, and all through the land, rail stakeholders were stirring, as Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern dealt their merger hand.
NEW YORK –– Prior to the Staggers of Act of 1980, the only way a Class I railroad could shed the cost of marginal or money losing light density rail line was abandonment.
Joining BNSF and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) in expressing their concerns about the proposed Union Pacific (UP)-MONTREAL –– Norfolk Southern (NS) merger, CN recently launched a page on its website encouraging its customers to speak up and file a Notice of Intent to Participate with the Surface Transportation Board (STB).
WASHINGTON, D.C. –– An Oct. 30 letter to the Surface Transportation Board co-authored by Senators John Hoeven (R-N.D.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) asks the STB to “closely scrutinize” the proposed Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger, stressing “the potential disruptions to U.S. rail service resulting from a merger of this scale” and “the need for the STB to fully analyze the potential impact on long-term competition, including for agriculture producers, many of whom already face limited options for accessing rail service.”
WASHINGTON, D.C. –– WATCHING WASHINGTON, NOVEMBER 2025 ISSUE OF RAILWAY AGE: Perhaps the gutsiest-ever regulatory agency decision was the Surface Transportation Board’s (STB) 2001 imposition of a railroad merger moratorium. Its architect was then-STB Chairperson Linda J. Morgan.
WASHINGTON, D.C. –– The federal government entered a partial shutdown at 12:01 a.m. ET on Oct. 1, 2025, after both Republican and Democratic funding proposals failed in the Senate.
WASHINGTON, D.C. –– The firing by POTUS 47 of outspoken Surface Transportation Board (STB) member and Democrat Robert E. Primus Aug. 27 leaves the five-member agency short two members as it awaits a formal merger application from Union Pacific (UP) and Norfolk Southern (NS). By early morning Aug. 28, Primus’ name was removed from the STB website’s listing of members.
WASHINGTON, D.C.––POTUS 47 on Aug. 27 fired Surface Transportation Board member Robert Primus, The Wall Street Journal reported Aug. 28, noting that the STB is “the railroad regulator weighing the proposed megamerger between Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern.”
WASHINGTON, D.C. –– Cutting to the chase on the 2027 STB merger decision: On July 30, Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern submitted to the Surface Transportation Board their prefiling notification, which is basically a heads up on their official merger application, expected in three to six months (between Oct. 30, 2025 and Jan. 29, 2026).
Railway Age and Railway Track & Structures on Nov. 5-6 returned to Chicago for our second-annual in-person Women in Rail Conference featuring trailblazing women and their allies, who are influencing today’s freight, passenger and transit rail industry.
In this not-to-be-missed session at the Women in Rail 2024 conference, presented by Railway Age and RT&S, illuminating new research on the underrepresentation of women of color in railroad engineering will be
Today’s professional journey is about more than doing a job well. AI-based candidate selection, social media prevalence, and revised work/life balance expectations are just a few of the elements to take into consideration as you advance your career.
What is Beth Whited’s backstory? How can her journey to becoming the first female president in Union Pacific’s history and the lessons she’s learned along the way help you in your career? Learn more during the kick-off session with Whited at the Railway Age / RT&S Women in Rail Conference, taking place Nov. 5-6 in Chicago.
Railway Age and Railway Track & Structures are returning to Chicago for our second-annual in-person Women in Rail Conference featuring trailblazing women and their allies who are significantly influencing today’s freight, passenger and transit rail industry. After
