Originally published at: Red state AGs: Rail merger could threaten national security - FreightWaves
The top law enforcement officers for nine states say the merger of Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern threatens national security – and President Trump’s plans for American prosperity.
The “Red” states of FL, IA, KS, MS, MT, OH, ND, SD, and TN are far more dependent on the Federal Highway System and the OTR trucks operating on them than any railroad. Their comment that “An America First economy will not work if high internal shipping costs kneecap American companies’ ability to compete with foreign manufacturers” is disingenuous at best. For all of us in the freight business, lousy rates and lousy profit margins ARE the issue. I, for one, have no interest in serving Florida precisely because of the long-standing freight imbalance and the resulting northbound “mulch rates.”
But here’s the hypocrisy the AGs never touch: Those “America First” states are the primary beneficiaries of the largest untolled, unpriced freight infrastructure subsidy in the world — the Interstate Highway System.Truckload carriers pay no proportional share of the billions required each year to maintain the pavement, bridges, drainage, and structures they depend on. Railroads, on the other hand, pay 100% of their own infrastructure, including capital improvements, maintenance, inspections, and repair.
So when these AGs warn that the UP–NS merger could “kneecap American companies” by raising shipping costs, they are ignoring the truth: The real kneecapping is the structural distortion created by subsidized asphalt.Railroads aren’t overcharging. They are competing against a highway network that socializes costs and privatizes profits.
If these states truly want freight competition, lower costs, and a stronger industrial base, then they should support:
- Tolling the interstates, so the trucking industry finally pays its fair share;
- Fixing the Chicago rail chokehold, which the UP–NS merger directly addresses by eliminating 24–48 hours of crosstown drayage delays;
- Modal balance, not modal favoritism disguised as populist “national security” rhetoric.
The AGs’ letter also ignores a simple geographic fact: their states need efficient rail. Agriculture, energy, chemicals, and manufacturing all depend on rail cycle time, reliability, and network fluidity. A coast-to-coast railroad with fewer interchanges, fewer drays, fewer yard touches, and faster service is precisely what would strengthen their economic competitiveness — not threaten it.
Review the merger rigorously.
But let’s be honest about the actual economics. The loudest critics are standing on subsidized pavement, pointing fingers at the one freight mode that actually pays its own way.