Union Pacific will spend $3.1 billion in 2017 on various railroad infrastructure projects across its network.
According to the firm, which operates railroad tracks and trains in more than 23 states, areas earmarked for rail infrastructure upgrades include: Texas, $452 million; California, $181 million; Arkansas, $135 million; Louisiana, $79 million; Oregon, $77.1 million; Kansas, $57 million; and Nebraska, $57 million.
In the Southwest, that includes $26.8 million for Nevada and $24.7 million for Arizona. A dollar amount for New Mexico was not made available.
Based in Omaha, the company is spending on its rail infrastructure to, “increase safety and minimize delays as trains travel through communities across Nevada,” said Wes Lujan, Union Pacific vice president of Public Affairs for the Western Region.
A considerable amount of that money will be put towards track or bridge maintenance, or to install rock ballast, Union Pacific says.
When it comes to the Arizona and Nevada projects, timelines are flexible, said Justin E. Jacobs, a Union Pacific spokesperson. “We will do these as they become feasible,” Jacobs said. “It’s based on where the crews are.”
Between 2012 and 2016, the company says it has invested more than $244 million to improve Nevada’s transportation infrastructure. The company says its Nevada projects in 2017 will be completed without assistance from taxpayers.
Jacobs said Union Pacific will hire subcontractors to work on upcoming projects, but would not disclose which firms.
Jacobs added that since 2000, Union Pacific has invested $51 billion of its own money throughout its network, or between $2 billion and $4 billion annually.
