28 THE CAAR COMMUNICATOR NEWS With rival railroad company Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) valued at $104 billion market cap and pocket change, the Canadian National Railway (CN), valued at $107.1 billion market cap, is always looking at ways for it to maintain its Big Brother status. In March 2023, Canadian Pacific purchased the US railroad Kansas City Southern and its Mexico subsidiary operations for US $31 billion. On April 14, 2023, it became the first and only railroad to directly serve Canada, Mexico, and the United States, working primarily along the North American west coast. This provided the Canadian Pacific with a considerable advantage over its Canadian National rival, as the acquisition and subsequent merger made it easier for Canadian grain et al. to be transported along the Gulf Coast into the US and Mexico. Never poke a bear: poke-a-poke-a-poke-a. To resolve the fact that Canadian Pacific has a triple punch system in place for the ag network, CN joined forces with two other railroads: Union Pacific of the US and Grupo Mexico of Mexico, to form Falcon Premium intermodal service. Operating from Mexico, it will enter the US via Eagle Pass, Texas, and then follow a central eastern route through Chicago and Detroit. From Detroit, it will enter Canada and head east towards Toronto, Montreal, and Moncton before terminating in Halifax. Via Chicago, Falcon Premium will enter Canada into Winnipeg, Regina, Saskatoon, Edmonton (and a spur line off-shooting to Calgary), and into BC, where it splits into two lines—to a Vancouver hub and one farther north in Prince George. The Canadian National Falcon Premium intermodal network has lines in Mexico, the US, and the eastern and western areas of Canada. However, its US presence has been mainly limited to central and eastern US rail lines. Excluding the Falcon Premium partnership, CN connects Canada’s eastern and western coasts with the US south via an 18,600-mile rail network. Looking for more business within the US, CN grabbed a larger slice of the central US pie with the agreement to purchase the Iowa Northern Railway (IANR) Company. The railroad is headquartered in Waterloo, Iowa. Along with Waterloo, it has offices, repair and maintenance shops, and yard facilities in Manly, Iowa. CN expands its central US reach Canadian National has agreed to purchase the agricultural Iowa Northern Railway. By Andrew Joseph, Editor A beautiful Iowa Northern Railway kitted GP40, a four-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by General Motors’ Electro-Motive Division, transports many of the state’s agricultural products. Photo courtesy of the Iowa Northern Railway Company.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTc0MDI3