How many U.S. train companies are there?

There are seven major railroads in the United States (Class I railroads) and over 500 shortline and regional railroads (Class II & Class III railroads). These lines are critical for shippers needing an economical solution to long-haul transportation. See our interactive maps below.



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This is an interactive map of the major freight railroads, also known as class I railroads in the United States. They include CSX, Norfolk Southern (NS), Burlington Northern and Santa Fe (BNSF), Union Pacific (UP), Canadian Pacific (CP), Canadian National Railway (CN), and the Kansas City Southern (KCS).

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U.S. railways are privately owned and operated, though the Consolidated Rail Corporation was established by the federal government and Amtrak uses public funds to subsidize privately owned intercity passenger trains.

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Top 5 2022 Railroads
  • BNSF Railway – $25.9 Billion Revenue.
  • 2 . Union Pacific Railroad – $24.9 Billion Revenue.
  • CSX Transportation – $14.9 Billion Revenue.
  • Norfolk Southern Railway – $12.7 Billion Revenue.
  • Canadian National Railway – $12.4 Billion Revenue.
  • Sources and Tools Used.


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The largest rail company in the world is Deutsche Bahn, with a revenue of $47.72 billion. As of 2021, the global rail industry has a market size of $295.80 billion.

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A comprehensive list and map of them can be found on abandonedrails.com. They claim there are 1,755 Abandonments. One can sort by state and see various pieces of information about them.

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Strasburg Railroad Begins It is still in business and is the oldest continuously operated railroad in the country.

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Union Pacific Railroad — Headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska It's the largest railroad in North America, operating 51,683 miles in 23 states.

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Amtrak is a federally chartered corporation, with the federal government as majority stockholder. The Amtrak Board of Directors is appointed by the President of the United States and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Amtrak is operated as a for-profit company, rather than a public authority.

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CSX Transportation (it's name deriving with the “C” standing for Chessie, “S” for Seaboard, and “X” an all-encompassing multiplication symbol that “together we are so much more”) is the railroad division of CSX Corporation. The latter was originally created in 1980 as a holding company for several subsidiaries.

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Charles Ro Supply Company owns and manufacturers USA Trains, the largest collection of G Gauge trains in the world. Although USA Trains is run as a separate entity it is still owned by the Charles Ro family.

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As of 2020, Texas was the U.S. state with the largest railroad mileage, reaching over 10,400 miles. It represented around 7.6 percent of the total mileage for the United States.

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American railways were also built on a wider gauge (the distance between the rails), which allows for larger and heavier trains. As a result, American freight railways are much more efficient than their European counterparts, carrying almost three times as much cargo per mile of track.

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Current Class I railroads
  • Amtrak.
  • BNSF Railway.
  • Canadian National Railway.
  • Canadian Pacific Kansas City.
  • CSX Transportation.
  • Norfolk Southern Railway.
  • Union Pacific Railroad.


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What is the biggest Class I Railroad?
  • BNSF Railway – $25.9 Billion Revenue, 32,500 route miles, 35,000 employees.
  • Union Pacific Railroad – $24.9 Billion Revenue, 32,100 route miles, 32,100 employees.
  • CSX Transportation – $14.9 Billion Revenue, 20,000 route miles, 25,000 employees.


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The US rail network, with an operating route length over 250,000km, is the biggest in the world. Freight lines constitute about 80% of the country's total rail network, while the total passenger network spans about 35,000km.

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Why Chicago, the U.S.'s Busiest Railroad Hub, Is So Vulnerable to Strikes.

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The Angel's Flight, USA With a rather beautiful name, found in the razzle and dazzle of Bunker Hill, Los Angeles, the Angel's Flight is regarded by many as the shortest railway in the world.

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As mentioned earlier 2007, Buffett purchased 60 billion shares of a railroad. The railroad in question was Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF). He made the buy for $4.73 billion, which gave him 17.5% of the company.

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Which Railroad Does Warren Buffett Own? BNSF Railways (formerly Burlington Northern Santa Fe) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway.

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