Freight-Rail timeline: ’58-’08

1958

• UP acquires Spokane International, gaining a connection with Canadian Pacific Railway
• “Railway Materials will pay $10 for each published suggestion by a railroad man as to how a manufacturer can help him do his job better through the development of new devices, tools and materials for him to work with.” — From the Editor’s Note in Railway Materials, Vol. 1, No. 1

1959

• SP marks last revenue steam-powered freight train in California; UP’s last steam locomotive in regular service runs from North Platte, Neb., to Cheyenne, Wyo.

1960

• Last scheduled CN steam locomotive arrives in Winnipeg
• UP forms plan to merge with the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific, beginning one of the longest, most bitterly contested merger proposals in railroad history
• SP and Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe (ATSF) bid to acquire Western Pacific (WP)

1961

• CN installs Canada’s first hot axle box detector
• Missouri Pacific (MP) acquires the rail industry’s first solid-state computer, an IBM 7070

1962

• WP relocates 21 track miles in California’s Feather River Canyon to bypass the new Oroville dam and lake
•  “Starting with the May-June 1962 issue, Railway Materials and Equipment’s name will be ‘Progressive Railroading.’” — Railway Materials and Equipment advertisement

1963

• Formal merger plan is submitted to UP and Rock Island boards

1964

• CN officially opens MacMillan Yard in Toronto
• Texas & Pacific gains control of Kansas, Oklahoma & Gulf and Midland Valley Railways
• Vermont Railway is formed as the nation’s first public/private rail operation

1965

• Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) rejects ATSF-SP bid for WP
• CN extends CTC from coast to coast in Canada

1966

• ICC hearings begin on the proposed UP-Rock Island merger; ICC review drags on for years
• The U.S. Department of Transportation and Federal Railroad Administration are created by the Department of Transportation Act

1967

• SP opens $22 million, 78-mile Palmdale-to-Colton cutoff in southern California, bypassing congestion in Los Angeles
• St. Louis-San Francisco Railway Co. ends passenger-rail service
• Norfolk & Western operates world’s longest and heaviest train — four miles long with 500 coal cars and six locomotives — between Laeger, W.Va., and Portsmouth, Ohio
• The National Transportation Safety Board is formed

1968

• MP gains control of the Chicago & Eastern Illinois Railroad; Great Western is merged into Chicago & North Western (C&NW); MP and C&NW gain joint control of Alton and Southern; UP acquires Mount Hood Railroad
• SP acquires industry’s first locomotive engineer training simulator

1969

• Holding company Union Pacific Corp. is created with UP as one operating arm; SP forms “Southern Pacific” holding company/calls railroad “Southern Pacific Transportation Co.”
• MP sells Evansville line (eastern side) of Chicago & Eastern Illinois to Louisville & Nashville Railroad
• Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen, Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen; Order of Railway Conductors and Brakemen; and Switchmen’s Union of North America merge and form the United Transportation Union

1970

• The Rail Passenger Service Act of 1970 creates Amtrak to take over intercity passenger-rail service
• Burlington Northern Railroad is created by the merger of five railroads: Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Co.; Northern Pacific Railway Co.; Great Northern Railway Co.; Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway Co.; and Pacific Coast Railway
• Penn Central declares bankruptcy
• C&NW becomes one of the first “employee-owned” railroads

1971

• The National Rail Passenger Service Act transfers most passenger service to Amtrak. Some railroads, including the Denver & Rio Grande, continue to operate passenger trains

1973

• SP opens $39 million West Colton yard in southern California
• R.J. Corman Railroad Group is formed
• Providence & Worcester Railroad begins independent operations
• The Delaware Ostego Corp. forms Central New York Railroad to acquire Erie Lackawanna Railroad’s Richford branch line

1974

• ICC approves UP-Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific (CRI&P) merger
• Southern Railway acquires former Norfolk Southern Railway

1975

• UP terminates offer to acquire CRI&P due to the severe deterioration of the Rock Island; CRI&P falls into receivership
• Massachusetts Central Railroad Corp. is established
• The Middletown & Hummelstown Railroad is formed to operate a Pennsylvania DOT-owned line acquired from the Reading Co.

1976

• Congress passes the Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act, creating Consolidated Rail Corp. (Conrail) from six bankrupt Northeast railroads
• Texas & Pacific and Chicago & Eastern Illinois are merged into the MP; the parent corporation, Mississippi River Corp., is renamed “Missouri Pacific Corp.” 

1977

• SP, Sea-Land and ACF develop/test prototype double-stack car

1978

• Bi-Modal unveils prototype Mark IV RoadRailer
• CSX Corp. is incorporated in Virginia for purposes of a merger between Seaboard Coast Line Industries Inc. and Chessie System Inc.

1979

• WP is spun off from its holding company, Western Pacific Industries, to a group of officers who form Newrail
• BN completes Orin Line, setting the stage for dramatic coal production growth in Wyoming’s Powder River Basin (PRB)
• CN and CPR telegraph services combine as CNCP Telecommunications

1980

• President Jimmy Carter signs the Staggers Rail Act, reducing the ICC’s regulatory authority over railroads, leading to changes in pricing and the rebirth of the short-line industry
• UP opens a new westbound yard in North Platte, Neb., making Bailey Yard the world’s largest classification yard
• BN acquires St. Louis-San Francisco Railway Co. (Frisco)
• UP, MP and WP file merger applications with the ICC; the Oklahoma-Kansas-Texas Railroad is incorporated by the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad (MKT) to operate a portion of the bankrupt Rock Island
• ICC approves merger of Seaboard Coast Line Industries and Chessie System into CSX Corp.
• SP, through the acquisition of part of the former Rock Island, extends its Cotton Belt subsidiary from St. Louis to Tucumcari, N.M.
• SP-ATSF announce plans to merge, but it wasn’t pursued
• Wisconsin & Southern Railroad Co. is formed

1981

• SP begins to operate 42 five-unit double-stack car sets
• Farmrail Corp. is formed to lease/operate Oklahoma DOT-owned lines

1982

• Southern Railway and Norfolk and Western Railway merge to form Norfolk Southern Corp.
• The Soo Line acquires the Minneapolis, Northfield and Southern
• ICC approves the UP-MP-WP merger; conditions include Denver & Rio Grande gaining trackage rights from Pueblo, Colo., to K.C., and SP gaining trackage rights from K.C. to St. Louis

1983

• Santa Fe Industries and Southern Pacific Co. announce plans to merge as a holding company called Santa Fe Southern Pacific Corp. (SFSP)
• President Reagan signs bill into law that authorizes transfer of the Alaska Railroad to the state
• The Watco Cos. Inc. is formed
• The Reading Blue Mountain & Northern Railroad launched operations as the Blue Mountain & Reading Railroad on a 13-mile line connecting Temple and Hamburg, Pa.

1984

• The “Connector Line,” a joint venture between UP and Western Railroad Properties Inc. (C&NW), opens, giving UP access to PRB coal fields
• UP begins phasing out cabooses
• Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton rings a locomotive bell to open the $40 million Downing B. Jenks Shop in North Little Rock
• Iowa Interstate Railroad Ltd. is founded
• Iowa Northern Railway Co. is formed following the liquidation of the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad’s assets

1985

• The Soo Line absorbs the Milwaukee Road
• ICC rejects SP-Santa Fe merger
• NS purchases motor carrier North American Van Lines (the Class I sold the carrier in 1998)
• Anacostia & Pacific Co. is founded

1986

• C&NW purchases the former Rock Island Kansas City-to-Minneapolis “spine line”
• CSX Transportation is formed as umbrella for CSX Corp.’s rail transport, distribution services and equipment units; Seaboard System Railroad Inc.’s name is changed to CSX Transportation
• NS launches Triple Crown^® Service, the first RoadRailer network    
• SP begins construction on Intermodal Container Transfer Facility in Long Beach, Calif.
• RailAmerica Inc. is formed
• The Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern Railroad is formed after acquiring portions of C&NW’s lines
• CG&T Industries Inc. purchases line — now operated by the Paducah & Louisville Railway — from the Illinois Central Railroad
• Pioneer Railcorp is incorporated
• The Indiana Rail Road Co. is founded

1987

• Conrail is privatized in what at the time was the largest share offering in U.S. history — investors pay $1.9 billion to buy Conrail shares
• SFSP asks ICC to reopen merger case; ICC refuses and orders the holding company to sell one or both railroads
• CSX/Sea-Land Intermodal (known as CSL Intermodal) and CSX/Sea-Land Logistics are formed
• Red River Valley & Western Railroad Co. launches operations after acquiring BN line
• Wisconsin Central Ltd. is formed
• Aberdeen Carolina & Western Railway Co. is incorporated after purchasing an NS branch line
• Montana Rail Link is formed and begins to operate former BN lines

1988

• UP acquires the MKT; Rio Grande Industries acquires SP; the D&RGW and SP merge, and SP name is retained
• CSX Transportation sells 80 route-miles of track to the state of Florida for $264 million
• NS acquires 377 miles of line/trackage rights from Illinois Central
• BC Electric Railway is sold by province of British Columbia to Itel Rail Corp. and renamed the Southern Railway of British Columbia

1989

• The first J.B. Hunt trailer moves via Santa Fe, starting significant use of intermodal by truckload motor carriers
• SP gains access to Chicago with the purchase of a St. Louis-to-Chicago line from the defunct Chicago, Missouri & Western; SP sets up a SP-Chicago-St. Louis subsidiary
• John Snow, who in 1988 became CSX’s president and COO, is elected CEO; he would become U.S. treasury secretary in 2002

1990

• CN begins caboose-less train operations
• CPR acquires full control of the Soo Line
• NS wins first Group A gold Harriman (and goes on to win 19 straight to date)
• The Wheeling & Lake Erie Railway is renewed (after dissolving in 1989) by group of investors who purchase lines from NS

1991

• CPR acquires the bankrupt Delaware and Hudson Railway, gaining access to U.S. Northeast ports
• Twin Cities & Western Railroad launches operation on Soo Line’s former Ortonville Line between Minneapolis/St. Paul and Milbank, S.D.

1993

• NS opens National Customer Service Center in Atlanta
• NS and Conrail begin doing business as joint venture partners in Triple Crown Services
• OmniTRAX Inc. is formed

1994

• UP gains minority control of C&NW; UP makes an offer for the AT&SF in competition with BN
• CN and CPR drop talks to merge operations in eastern Canada
• KCS acquires MidSouth Rail Corp., extending KCSR’s service territory to Meridian, Miss., Counce, Tenn., and Tuscaloosa and Birmingham, Ala.; providing trackage rights into Gulfport, Miss.; and allowing KCSR to interchange with NS and CSX
• NS’ income from operations exceeds $1 billion for the first time

1995

• The 108-year-old ICC is replaced by the Surface Transportation Board
• UP merges with C&NW and drops bid to acquire AT&SF
• BN and AT&SF merge into the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp., with SP gaining trackage rights as a merger concession
• CN is privatized
• CN opens St. Clair Tunnel between Sarnia, Ontario, and Port Huron, Mich.
• The Mexican Congress approves an amendment to Article 28 of the United Mexican States’ Political Constitution, paving the way for privatization of FNM, the country’s 16,415-mile railway system
• KCS purchases 49 percent stake in MexRail Inc., owner of the Texas Mexican Railway (Tex Mex)
• Finger Lakes Railway acquires Conrail line, launches operation

1996

• STB approves UP-SP merger; Tex Mex gains trackage rights to connect with KCSR at Beaumont, Texas
• Grupo TMM and KCS win concession to operate Mexico’s 2,400-mile Northeast Railway
• KCS acquires Gateway Western Railway, which operated between K.C. and East St. Louis, Ill.
• Genesee & Wyoming Inc. acquires switching service provider Rail Link Inc. from Varlen Corp.

1997

• UP and the FRA unveil a package of Safety Assurance Compliance Process measures; UP files a Service Recovery Plan with the STB
• BNSF completes $95 million reconstruction of Argentine Yard in K.C.
• Grupo Mexico, Ingenieros Civiles Asociados and UP win concession to operate Mexico’s 3,885-mile Pacific-North Railway

1998

• CN becomes a “scheduled railroad” — adhering to velocity, dwell time and general-purpose train standards — and acquires Illinois Central Railroad
• Grupo Tribasa S.A. wins concession to operate Mexico’s 1,360-mile Southeast Railway
• KCS acquires a 50 percent stake in the 47.6-mile Panama Canal Railway Co.
• DM&E seeks STB approval to build a 260-mile line to serve the PRB

1999

• Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. and CN propose merger — which would have created North America’s largest railroad — and formation of holding company North American Railways
• Conrail is absorbed by NS and CSX; Conrail Shared Assets Area is formed in north and south New Jersey, Philadelphia and Detroit
• CN takes control of Illinois Central
• UP and BNSF co-locate dispatching in southern California, K.C. and the PRB
• UP completes one of the largest construction projects in modern times: the rebuilding of double track and addition of a third mainline across central Nebraska

2000

• The STB issues a 15-month moratorium on railroad mergers — prompting BNSF and CN to drop their merger plan — and proposes new rules requiring merger partners to prove their union would enhance competition and prevent service problems
• UP completes 105-mile double-track project between Gibbon, Neb., and Marysville, Kan.
• RailAmerica acquires Railtex Inc., which owns 25 short lines

2001

• CN acquires Wisconsin Central
• CPR becomes an independent, publicly traded company

2002

• U.S. DOT and AAR create the Surface Transportation Information Sharing and Analysis Center to improve security for owners and operators of transportation infrastructure in the wake of 9/11
• Alameda Corridor opens to expedite intermodal traffic associated with southern California ports
• DM&E acquires I&M Rail Link and forms the Iowa, Chicago & Eastern Railroad
• RailAmerica acquires ParkSierra Rail Group

2003

• Class Is, Amtrak, Metra, the city of Chicago and state of Illinois unveil the Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency (CREATE) Program, a $1.5 billion plan aimed at reducing freight- and passenger-rail congestion in the Windy City
• UP opens $181 million Chicago region intermodal facility in Rochelle, Ill.
• Intermodal exceeds coal as the railroads’ single largest revenue-generating commodity
• CN acquires BC Rail Ltd.
• The Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway launches operations after acquiring former Bangor & Aroostook Railroad lines

2004

• KCS acquires Grupo TMM’s shares in TFM
• CN acquires Great Lakes Transportation’s rail and marine holdings
• “By nearly every indicator, long-term safety trends on the nation’s railroads appear very positive.” — FRA

2005

• KCS acquires full ownership of Mexrail and Grupo TMM’s interest in TFM. In an agreement with the Mexican government, KCS acquires the remaining 20 percent interest in TFM, and TFM becomes wholly owned KCS subsidiary; TFM is renamed Kansas City Southern de México

2006

• Class Is originate 852 million tons of coal — far more than in any previous year
• U.S. and Canadian railroads move 14.6 million intermodal trailers and containers, an all-time high
• U.S. railroads haul 146,000 ethanol carloads, up from 82,000 in 2005 and 69,000 in 2004
• The U.S. rail employee casualty and grade crossing collision rates are the lowest ever, declining 81 percent and 76 percent, respectively, since 1980

2007

• CPR reaches an agreement to acquire the DM&E; seeks STB approval for the transaction
• CN reaches deal to acquire a major portion of the EJ&E; seeks STB approval
• BNSF completes a third main track along entire 103-mile Joint Line serving the PRB
• Fortress Investment Group L.L.C. acquires RailAmerica and Florida East Coast Railway
• TCI sends letter to CSX’s board criticizing management and performance; sparks an ongoing proxy fight for control of the board
• Railroads put into service scores of new “GenSet” switchers that are expected to reduce air emissions up to 90 percent and cut fuel consumption up to 37 percent
• American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials releases report stating railroads need to invest $175 billion to $195 billion in infrastructure to maintain current market share
• AAR and Cambridge Systematics release study showing railroads need to invest $148 billion in capacity during the next 30 years to meet growing demand

2008

• On May 26, diesel prices reach a record $4.72 per gallon; in May 2007, diesel cost $2.81 per gallon
• The UTU and NCCC reach a tentative national labor agreement after three years of on-and-off bargaining
• FRA issues regulations addressing human error-caused train accidents and the routing of trains carrying hazardous materials
• EPA sets stricter locomotive engine emission standards, which will begin to take effect in 2012
• BNSF completes 21 miles of fourth main track on the PRB’s Joint Line — the world’s longest quadruple mainline exclusively for freight service, BNSF says

Sources: BNSF, CSX, KCS, NS, UP Railroad Museum, AAR, and various railroad, association and government agency Web sites