Not Another Houston

UP’s Support Was Manufactured, Not Earned

When Union Pacific sought community support for its merger with Norfolk Southern, it moved fast — deliberately fast.

Letters of support were collected from organizations and officials before the full details of the merger application were even public.

Supporters were asked to sign on before anyone could meaningfully evaluate what they were endorsing.

This isn’t an accident. It’s a strategy. Gathering commitments early — before scrutiny arrives — creates the appearance of broad community buy-in while limiting the chance for informed opposition to organize.

Real support is earned through transparency.

It means sharing the full picture, giving communities time to ask hard questions, and accepting the answer even when it’s no. What UP conducted wasn’t community engagement. It was a head start.

The communities most impacted by this merger — the ones living alongside the tracks — deserve to be the loudest voices in this process, not an afterthought to a signature campaign that was already finished.

Examples of letters of support filed before the merger details were public

The application details were open on December 19, 2026. The dates on all these letters are long before.

These are from organizations you would not expect and from politicians who should know to get the details before putting their name on it.