Omaha-Based Union Pacific Is Buying Norfolk Southern In $85-Billion Deal

(Omaha, NE) -- Omaha-based Union Pacific Railroad is buying Norfolk Southern in an $85-billion dollar deal.

The merger creates the first transcontinental railroad in the United States, spanning more than 52,000 miles coast-to-coast through 43 states.

The two companies' boards of directors unanimously approved the transaction.

The deal is expected to close within the next two years.

U.P. tells KFAB Radio News that the merged railroad name will be Union Pacific, and the headquarters will remain in Omaha.