Rail merger could cut shipping costs, ease delays for farmers

(The Center Square) – Agriculture economists and transportation analysts say a proposed $85 billion merger between Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern could lower shipping costs and ease long-standing bottlenecks for American farmers. The Surface Transportation Board, which oversees railroad mergers, rejected the companies’ initial application as incomplete. The railroads plan to refile by the end of April. Industry analysts say the merger would connect two rail systems that operate in different parts of the country rather than eliminate competition. Paul Prentice, a former chief macro-economist for the United States Department of Agriculture, said the deal combines two complementary networks. “This is not really a merger of competitors,” Prentice said. “It is a merger of cooperators – a merger between a western railroad and an eastern railroad.” Prentice said the split between eastern and western rail netwo