By Esther Fung

Several state attorneys general said the proposed railroad merger between Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern poses significant risk to American companies that could "throttle the economy" and "compromise our national security."

The proposed $71.5 billion deal "will result in undue market concentration that stifles competition and therefore creates higher prices, lower reliability, and less innovation at the expense of America's manufacturers and, ultimately, America's consumers," according to the letter Friday signed by attorneys general of nine states: Ohio, Tennessee, Kansas, Florida, North Dakota, South Dakota, Mississippi, Iowa and Montana.

Prior railroad mergers resulted in worse rail service and higher costs, they said in the letter to the Surface Transportation Board, the economic regulator overseeing the freight railroads. The STB will review the merger application and decide if it will be approved.

There are currently six major freight railroads operating in the U.S., and several shippers, such as chemical companies, have said they are worried that further rail consolidation would result in them being captive to one or two railroad operators.

Union Pacific has said that it will open another carrier to any customer that will lose access to a carrier if the merger occurs.

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 14, 2025 15:17 ET (20:17 GMT)

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