Norfolk Southern Railway
The Norfolk Southern Railway (reporting mark NS) is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States. Headquartered in Atlanta, the company was formed in 1982 with the merger of the Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. The company operates 19,420 route miles (31,250 km) in 22 eastern states, the District of Columbia, and has rights in Canada over the Albany to Montreal route of the Canadian Pacific Kansas City. Norfolk Southern Railway is the leading subsidiary of the Norfolk Southern Corporation.
Map of Norfolk Southern Railway with trackage rights in purple | |
NS 9865, a GE Dash 9-40CW, leads an intermodal train in Wauseon, Ohio | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
| Reporting mark | NS |
| Locale | Northeastern, Southern and Midwestern United States |
| Dates of operation | 1982–present |
| Predecessors | Norfolk and Western Railway Southern Railway Conrail |
| Technical | |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge |
| Length | 19,335 miles (31,117 km) |
| Other | |
| Website | nscorp |
Norfolk Southern's headquarters in Atlanta | |
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| NYSE: NSC DJTA Component S&P 500 Component | |
| Industry | Transportation |
| Founded | July 23, 1980 in Norfolk, Virginia, U.S. |
| Headquarters | , United States |
Key people | Alan H. Shaw (President and CEO) |
| Revenue | US$12.745 billion (2022) |
| US$4.809 billion (2022) | |
| US$3.270 billion (2022) | |
| Total assets | US$38.885 billion (2022) |
| Total equity | US$12.733 billion (2022) |
Number of employees | 19,300 (2022) |
| Website | nscorp |
| Footnotes / references | |
Norfolk Southern is responsible for maintaining 28,400 miles (45,700 km), with the remainder being operated under trackage rights from other parties responsible for maintenance work. Intermodal containers and trailers are the most common commodity type carried by NS, which have grown as the coal business has declined throughout the 21st century; coal was formerly the largest traffic source. The railway offers the largest intermodal rail network in eastern North America. NS was also the pioneer of Roadrailer service. Norfolk Southern and its chief competitor, CSX Transportation, have a duopoly on the transcontinental freight rail lines in the Eastern United States.
Norfolk Southern is the namesake and leading subsidiary of the Norfolk Southern Corporation, based in Atlanta, Georgia; it was headquartered in Norfolk, Virginia until 2021. Norfolk Southern Corporation was incorporated in Virginia on July 23, 1980, and is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the symbol NSC. The primary business function of Norfolk Southern Corporation is the rail transportation of raw materials, intermediate products, and finished goods across the Southeast, East, and Midwest United States. The corporation further facilitates transport to the remainder of the United States through interchange with other rail carriers while also serving overseas transport needs by serving several Atlantic and Gulf Coast ports. As of April 4, 2023, Norfolk Southern Corporation's total public stock value $72.5 billion. In April 2023, Norfolk Southern reported first-quarter 2023 railway operating revenue of $3.13 billion.