Canadian National buys Iowa Northern Railway

Montreal-based rail carrier Canadian National on Thursday announced it has bought Iowa Northern Railway, which operates approximately 275 track miles in Iowa.

The transaction is pending regulatory review by the U.S. Surface Transportation Board. The terms of the purchase were not disclosed.

CN is one of North America's six biggest railroads with more than 18,000 miles of track across Canada and the United States.

Iowa Northern Railroad primarily serves agricultural and industrial markets, including grains, and biofuels, which includes ADM and POET. It moves John Deere tractors and Tyson frozen foods and egg products, the company said in a 2022 Gazette interview.

The line runs diagonally through Iowa, northwest to southeast, from Manly to Cedar Rapids, with a branch line from Waterloo to Oelwein and a branch line from Forest City to Belmond. The Class III short-line railroad has its headquarters in Waterloo.

Its acquisition by CN provides “a meaningful opportunity to support the growth of local business by creating single-line service to North American destinations, while preserving access to existing carrier options,” the company stated.

The acquisition will enable Canadian National “to play an even more important role in this critical supply chain and densifying our southern network,” CN CEO Tracy Robinson said in a statement

Daniel Sabin, chairman of Iowa Northern Railway, said the Iowa carrier believes CN shares the railroad’s “commitment to local stakeholders and that this transaction will be beneficial for customers, employees and the local Iowa economy.”

“We are confident that, as part of CN, (Iowa Northern) will be able to continue to provide reliable first- and last-mile service to our local customers while providing them access to a much broader network and market,” he said.

Iowa Northern in 2022 received a $7.2 million federal infrastructure grant to upgrade its line from Cedar Rapids to Manly. The railway formed in 1984 on a section of the old Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad Co. that dates to the 1800s.

The company had about 115 employees in 2022.