CN Rail on track through Mid America corridor

MONTREAL — CN Rail and Norfolk Southern Corp. say both railways will create a shared "MidAmerica Corridor" between Chicago, St. Louis, Kentucky, and Mississippi.

The plan would establish shorter and faster routes for merchandise and coal traffic moving between the Midwest and Southeast, the companies state in a press release.

Norfolk Southern (NS) will haul CN freight between Chicago and St. Louis, reducing the distance between these points for CN shipments by 60 miles.

NS will use CN’s routes between St. Louis and Fulton, Ky., saving more than 50 miles on NS shipments.

CN will haul NS freight between Chicago and Fulton, shortening NS’s Chicago-to-Birmingham route by almost 100 miles.

Also as part of the MidAmerica Corridor, the railways also plan to create a new "coal gateway" at Corinth, Miss., to better link NS-served southeastern utility plants with CN-served Illinois Basin coal producers.

The West Tennessee Railroad between Fulton and Corinth, will be upgraded to handle heavier shipments and additional rail traffic.

"This innovative track-sharing arrangement will expedite our customers’shipments, improve asset utilization and generate new efficiencies for both CN and NS," said E. Hunter Harrison, president CEO of CN.