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STB Approves CPKC-CSX Southeast Link
[ October 25, 2024 // Gary G Burrows ]U.S. Surface Transportation Board has approved applications from CSX Corp. and Canadian Pacific Kansas City, or CPKC, to acquire rail lines operated by Genesee & Wyoming Inc.’s Meridian & Bigbee Railroad.
The approval, effective Nov. 16, allows creation of a new direct CPKC-CSX interchange connection in Alabama.
Through the approved transaction, initially announced in June 2023, CPKC will acquire and operate across the 52-mile segment between Meridian, Miss., and Myrtlewood, Ala., currently owned by MNBR, while CSX will operate the lines currently operated by MNBR east of Myrtlewood.
As a result, CPKC and CSX will establish a direct Class I-to-Class I interchange at or near Myrtlewood and connect shippers in Mexico, Texas, and the Southeast U.S. MNBR will continue to provide local service to customers between Meridian and Myrtlewood.
Creating a new Class I corridor will provide “more efficient service for existing CPKC and CSX traffic, while introducing new competitive shipping options between Mexico, Texas, and the U.S. Southeast for our customers,” said Keith Creel, president and CEO of Calgary, Alberta-based CPKC. The new east-west Class I route will take more trucks off the road and grow rail transportation by expanding markets across the southern U.S., he added.
Joe Hinrichs, president and CEO of Jacksonville, Florida-based CSX, said the interchange will allow “customers to have greater connectivity and efficiency to reach key markets in Texas, Mexico, and the U.S. Southeast – all while providing safe and reliable service.”
“This transaction is a win for customers, who benefit from a new Class I connection in the growing Southeast U.S. and uninterrupted short line service from MNBR between Myrtlewood, Alabama, and Meridian, Mississippi,” said Michael Miller, CEO of G&W, which owns or leases more than 100 freight railroads throughout North America.
