(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Rail "Transcontinentalization" May be Closer Than We Think [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2026-04-05 I’ll begin by thanking Alan Kandel’s informative article on whether the US will ever see rail “transcontinentalization” within its borders. It inspired me to write this piece as (1) a response to his question and (2) a broader discussion on the actual challenges facing transcontinental (long-distance) passenger rail service in the US. As a lover of trains, I see very few DK posts on the subject of rail travel in the US. That may be because there aren’t a lot of train enthusiasts lurking or posting on DK. Or they may be “in the closet,” so to speak, figuring that no one else on the site shares their enthusiasm. Partly to challenge these assumption(s), I contributed one or two posts last year on challenges facing US passenger rail service. If one picks up a recent copy of Trains (March 2026 or later), they will find that Union Pacific (UP) and Norfolk Southern (NS), two of this country’s five Class I freight railroads, developed just this sort of east-west transcontinental merger to be submitted to the federal Surface Transportation Board (STB) for approval. STB approval would green-light the creation of an east-west transcontinental railroad identical to what Alan Kandel identified in his post. I will note at this point that two other Class I railroads, Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern, merged to form Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) in April 2023 following STB approval. This north-south transcontinental railroad’s route map ties together Canada, the US, and Mexico. If approved, the proposed UP-NS merger would tie together major port cities on both coasts. It would also connect southeast US interior rail hubs like Atlanta, Memphis, and Birmingham with each other. The proposed merger was submitted to the STB in late December 2025. The STB rejected the merger proposal in January as incomplete, particularly WRT market data and potential problematic impacts on shippers and competing Class I railroads. The STB invited the two railroads to submit a revised merger proposal that addresses stakeholder concerns about the potential market impacts of a merged UP-NS. Even if approved, the UP-NS merger will likely leave unaddressed the challenges this country faces in upgrading long-distance/transcontinental passenger rail service. Amtrak long-distance trains like the California Zephyr, Empire Builder, Southwest Chief, and Sunset Limited all operate west of the Mississippi River. Two other routes (Cardinal and Lake Shore Limited) connect DC and NYC with Chicago, respectively; both terminate in Chicago. These and other Amtrak long-distance routes operate almost entirely on freight railroad-owned tracks. Although the Amtrak Improvement Act of 1973 requires priority for passenger trains on tracks shared with freight trains, this rule is largely unenforced for a variety of reasons (which I will not confuse or bore you with in this post). The result is that Amtrak passenger trains on shared tracks spend a lot of time in sidings waiting for prioritized freight trains to pass in the opposite direction (or slower priority freight ahead of them to clear the tracks). On rails owned by Amtrak (including most of the Northeast Corridor) and cooperating state transportation agencies in NY, Connecticut, and Massachusetts, passenger trains are prioritized and long-distance freight trains heavily restricted if not banned. This virtually eliminates freight train-related delays along the NEC, a result felt and appreciated by rail passengers who have ridden NEC and non-NEC Amtrak trains. It’s why NEC Amtrak service covers system-wide operating costs for itself and struggling long-distance Amtrak service elsewhere in the US. Infrastructure costs are another story, but then the federal gasoline fuel tax has never covered the infrastructure costs of federal highways, interstate or non-interstate. My point is that the US is already served by one transcontinental freight railroad: CPKC. It allows a single freight car to travel from Canada to Mexico without having to be switched to another train en route. That is currently not the case for east-west transcontinental rail freight loads. This will change if the proposed Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger is approved and pulled off without major system hiccups. Transcontinental passenger rail service—a one-seat ride from coast to coast—will likely require federal takeover and improvement of the tracks (rail infrastructure) for at least one of the routes currently shared by Amtrak long-distance trains and freight service. Government and state-owned enterprise (SOE) rail ownership are already the rule rather than the exception in Europe, Central/South America, Africa, and Asia. The US’s 157-year history of privatized rail ownership and capitalist opposition to public works that actually serve the public are major obstacles to doing the same thing here. However, remember that the terms difficult and impossible are not synonyms. This can be seen in the proposed and ongoing expansion of passenger rail service (long-distance/Amtrak and commuter/regional) in non-coastal parts of the US. This includes the Great Lakes (Minnesota to Michigan) and Southeast (Virginia, the Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida to Texas) areas. If you want to learn more or keep up with current passenger rail news (US and abroad), Trains Magazine is a great, but not exclusive, source. Much more information can be found on websites maintained by Amtrak; state transportation agencies; and national passenger rail advocacy groups like the Rail Passengers Association, High Speed Rail Alliance, Rail Users Network, and US High Speed Rail Association. All Aboard! [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2026/4/5/2376498/-Rail-Transcontinentalization-May-be-Closer-Than-We-Think?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=latest_community&pm_medium=web Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/