Union Pacific Gives Consumer Access to Rival

Union Pacific Corp. agreed to give chief competitor Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. access to Gulf Coast-area customers to ease railroad traffic jams that have stalled deliveries throughout the region for months. Union Pacific Chief Executive Richard Davidson declined to predict when the situation--which has led to the worst railroad freight delays in more than 25 years--would improve, saying he had already been wrong on earlier predictions of Thanksgiving and Jan. 1. Charles Matthews, chairman of the Texas Railroad Commission, said the delays are costing businesses in the state more than $100 million a month, or about $1.1 billion so far. Matthews said he had been told by rail officials that the delays are going to continue “for the rest of 1998.” Shares of Bethlehem, Pa.-based UP closed down 75 cents to $58.81, and shares of Fort Worth-based Burlington closed down 88 cents to $95.88, both on the New York Stock Exchange.