Illinois lives depend on simpler freight rail | Opinion

More rail freight moves through Illinois than any other state in the country.

Every day, over 1,300 trains pass through the Chicago region. While that volume is an economic asset for the city, it also concentrates the risk of rail related incidents.

In 2025, Illinois recorded 134 train-vehicle collisions, resulting in 34 deaths and 27 serious injuries. Something needs to change.

The Associated Fire Fighters of Illinois represents more than 18,000 professional fire fighters, medical personnel, and dispatchers. Our members work alongside rail corridors, responding to grade crossing collisions, hazmat incidents, and emergencies where a blocked train forces a crew to wait or find another route to get to their patient.

The proposed merger between Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern would reduce the frequency of trains stopping in Chicago, allowing us to better serve our community.

Today, Union Pacific mainly operates west of the Mississippi while Norfolk Southern operates east of it, requiring freight moving coast to coast to involve a handoff between them at interchange points in cities like Chicago.

A merged operation would consolidate that activity, eliminating approximately 2,550 daily interchange touches and streamlining the flow of freight through Illinois communities.

For first responders, fewer trains idling at interchange points means fewer blocked crossings and more predictable rail operations across the corridors we serve.

Blocked crossings are where that complexity falls hardest on the public.

In northeastern Illinois, motorists, fire trucks, and ambulances lose an estimated 44,300 hours every weekday at highway-rail grade crossings. Union Pacific has already reduced average response times at historically blocked crossings by 30 percent since 2023 through operational management improvements.

Applying that discipline across a unified network rather than two separate ones is a structural change that can produce sustained results.

Together, UP and NS trained more than 10,000 first responders across 20 cities in 2024 with hands-on instruction using real railroad equipment. Norfolk Southern has directed more than $6.2 million into first responder organizations through its Safety-First grant program since 2023.

A combined company with greater resources and a unified network can expand that investment in Illinois communities that carry more rail traffic than anywhere else in the country.

One of the biggest victories secured through this merger is its unprecedented, first-of-its-kind labor protections.

Through the Jobs for Life pledge, many union employees working on either railroad at the time of the merger is guaranteed a job for life, providing a level of certainty and security rarely seen in the industry. Beyond protecting existing workers, the combined company is projected to create 1,200 net new union jobs by year three to support growing freight demand.

This agreement preserves and expands skilled railroad jobs in Illinois, ensuring they remain rooted in local communities rather than being consolidated elsewhere.

Our members will keep responding to whatever happens on these lines.

But Chicago deserves a rail network that is simpler, safer, and more efficient. By reducing the number of handoffs, occupied crossings, and trucks on Illinois roads, this merger will improve public safety and save lives.

The companies behind this proposal have demonstrated a clear commitment to first responders, the communities we serve, and the union workforce that keeps the rail system moving.

For those reasons, the Surface Transportation Board should approve this merger.

Chuck Sullivan is president of the Associated Fire Fighters of Illinois.