ANALYZING THE MERGER : RAILROADING HAS CHANGED DRAMATICALLY SINCE THE MERGER FRENZY OF THE 1990S

This article focuses on railroad mergers by first looking at the reasons why mergers are formed. Mergers lead to larger rail networks which makes rail service more attractive as a result of the increase in the number of available single-line movements. Conflicting priorities are avoided, deliveries are more consistent, and profitability is easier to achieve. Cost reductions also play into the picture, as assets are more efficiently used, redundant maintenance facilities can be shut down, parallel lines can be run as paired track. A final motivation that is offered is the notion of empire- building. With the economic climate looking favorable for railroad mergers, this article profiles the following railroads and their merger potential: Kansas City Southern (KCS), Canadian National (CN), Canadian Pacific Railroad (CPR), Union Pacific (UP), Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF), CSX, and Norfolk Southern (NS). Included is an analysis of the potential mergers in terms of what would and wouldn't work, and the resulting payoffs.