Recent Railroad Merger Activity

Excerpts from the report: From 1957 to June 1961, the Interstate Commerce Commission approved 7 mergers involving 17 rail lines. As of April 1961, another 11 proposed mergers involving 30 lines were awaiting approval by either the ICC or stockholders of the companies involved, being prepared for presentation before the ICC, or undergoing preliminary study before presentation to stockholders. This degree of merger activity on the part of the railroads has not been evident since shortly after 1900. Why this resurging interest in mergers and consolidations? What is the attitude of the national regulatory and legislative bodies toward this trend? How will mergers affect the national transportation scene? Of what importance are mergers to the nation's agricultural economy? These questions are only a few of the many that come to the fore