WEDNESDAY, September 16, 2026|
Photo – Big Boy in Medicine Bow – Bigfoot99 file photo
Medicine Bow officials expressed concern about the anticipated increase in train traffic stemming from a proposed Union Pacific merger.
Last July, Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern railroads announced plans to combine into a single system. The Surface Transportation Board, the federal agency responsible for regulating railroad business practices, is currently reviewing the proposal to ensure it will benefit the public and enhance and expand market competition.
During Monday evening’s Medicine Bow Town Council meeting, Mayor Justin George announced that the Surface Transportation Board had asked the town to collect public comments on the Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern merger.
Mayor George said the town has no official concerns as the impact will be confined to the railroad tracks. Public Works Director Brian Lashley countered, saying that in an emergency, increased train traffic from the merger could impede his crews’ ability to reach the water tower south of town.
Mayor George said under normal circumstances, Union Pacific trains are not permitted to obstruct County Road 1, also known as Medicine Bow McFadden Road, for longer than 10 minutes. The mayor encouraged Public Works Director Lashley to contact the Harriman Dispatching Center if a train blocks the road longer.
Town Attorney Cameron Smith said Union Pacific expects the most significant impacts to be limited to rail yards and associated roadways rather than communities situated along the tracks.
No other comments were made during the public hearing.
Union Pacific’s competitors, including BNSF Railway, CSX, and CPKC, filed a joint submission urging the Surface Transportation Board to reject the merger application. The rail carriers argued that the merger was anti‑competitive, harmful to shippers and consumers, and would create “intractable problems.”
The Surface Transportation Board is not expected to issue a final ruling on the proposed merger until the later half of 2027.
