Open Markets Calls for Senate to Halt Proceedings on Surface Transportation Board Nominees
“Rushing through nominations before Primus’s challenge to his unlawful termination is resolved furthers suspicions that the administration is seeking a rubber stamp approval for the merger between Norfolk Southern and Union Pacific.”
Washington, D.C. (November 6, 2025) – Open Markets Institute transportation analyst Arnav Rao released the following statement following Thursday’s hearing on nominees to the Surface Transportation Board, Richard Kloster and Michelle Schultz, in the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation:
“The President’s illegal attempt to fire Surface Transportation Board member Robert Primus cast a shadow over today’s hearing for Surface Transportation Board nominees.
“Rushing through nominations before Primus’s challenge to his unlawful termination is resolved furthers suspicions that the administration is seeking a rubber stamp approval for the merger between Norfolk Southern and Union Pacific.
“This $72 billion rail mega-merger would create the first coast-to-coast rail corporation in U.S. history. Previous mergers have failed to deliver the promised efficiencies that corporations have claimed, and it is crucial that the Board adequately assess its potential impact on service, labor, and the prices of the countless essential goods that travel along our railways every day.
“Senators must pause proceedings on further nominations to the Surface Transportation Board until Primus’s status is resolved. Furthermore, we call on lawmakers in both parties to carefully analyze the impacts of this merger and rigorously question future nominees on their commitment to enforcing the law, promoting competition, protecting rail workers, and ensuring the price of everyday goods are not further driven up through illegitimate mergers.”
Also see recent works:
“Railroad Merger: Why It Could Go Off the Rails” by Arnav Rao in the Washington Monthly (August 2025)
“How One Mega Merger Could Raise Prices On Everything,” Rao’s interview with More Perfect Union (November 2025)