Canadian National, commonly known as CN, is North America’s fourth highest-earning railroad with nearly 20,000 route miles. Primarily serving southern Canada, the railroad branches southward to New Orleans, including the former Illinois Central Gulf Railroad, running north and south through Illinois.
Its longtime rival, the Canadian Pacific, has its rail system running through much of Canada as well as the upper Midwest including lines through Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa and tracks from Chicago across northern Illinois, through Iowa and Missouri to Kansas City.
Freight Waves, a resource for the global freight industry, reports CP is North America’s No. 6 railroad company.
The continent’s seventh-largest railway by revenue, according to Food and Power, an industry policy analysis firm, is Kansas City Southern. Its holdings include the very desirable cross-border route into Mexico. Analysis of rail maps shows that purchase of the KCS by either Canadian entity, would give the buying railroad lines spanning the North American continent into Mexico.
Concerns
More than 2,000 letters expressing opposition or support were filed with the STB during the initial public comment period that is now closed.
Opposition to the merger has come from a number of fronts. Canadian Pacific has called the pending CN-KCS merger “anti-competitive.” A CP-produced fact sheet alleges if the merger is approved, freight traffic on many Canadian National tracks, including those that run through Southern Illinois, will grow.