The is a
United States -based
Class I Railroad operating over 3,130 track miles in 12 central and southeastern states. Founded in
1887 , the railroad provides the shortest route from
Kansas City to the
Gulf Of Mexico . Its COO is
Arthur L. Shoener .
The Kansas City Southern is headquartered in
Kansas City, Missouri , and has approximately 430 locomotives, 15,000
Freight Car s, and 2,700 employees. Annual revenues as of 2002 were US$559.6 million.
Arthur Edward Stilwell began construction on the first line of what would become the Kansas City Southern Railway in
1887 , in suburban
Kansas City, Missouri . Over the ensuing decade, the line grew through construction and acquisitions to become a through route between Kansas City and
Port Arthur, Texas , with the final spike being driven north of
Beaumont, Texas , on
September 11 ,
1897 . Another mainline between
Dallas and
New Orleans , via
Shreveport, Louisiana , was added through merger with the
Louisiana And Arkansas Railway during the
1930s . From
1940 to
1969 , Kansas City Southern operated the ''
Southern Belle ''
Passenger Train between Kansas City and New Orleans.
The core KCS system remained essentially the same until the
1990s , when the purchase of the
MidSouth Rail Corporation extended KCS's reach eastward from Shreveport and into
Mississippi and
Alabama . This acquisition, combined with existing KCS routes, created a key east-west mainline marketed as the
Meridian Speedway (named for the town of
Meridian, Mississippi ). An additional acquisition, the
Gateway Western Railway , extended KCS's reach from Kansas City to
St. Louis, Missouri , and to
Springfield, Illinois .
The
1990s also saw KCS extend its reach into
Mexico , with the acquisition of partial interests in the
Texas Mexican Railway and
Grupo Transportación Ferroviaria Mexicana . In 2005, KCS was successful in acquiring a controlling interest in both roads.
A parent company of the Kansas City Southern Railway was organized in
1962 as Kansas City Southern Industries, Inc. In
2002 , the name of the parent company was shortened to Kansas City Southern.
The Kansas City Southern owns a 50% stake in the
Panama Canal Railway Company (PCRC). In April 2005, KCS completed its purchase of a controlling interest in the Mexican railroad
Grupo Transportación Ferroviaria Mexicana (TFM) from
Grupo TMM . That December, Kansas City Southern Industries renamed TFM as '' (KCSM).
Although KCS itself is planned to be a holding company for the Kansas City Southern Railway,
TexMex and TFM, the whole four-railway system is marketed to shippers as the ''
NAFTA Railway '', emphasizing the KCS's abilities in cross-border transportation. However, the railroads are all operated as subsidiary companies. KCS's long-term plans include support of the
Kansas City SmartPort , in which customs officials from Mexico would inspect cargo at the railroad's loading facility at the former
Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base and speed them across the border to Mexican ports for transport to Asia.
KCS has been the recipient of the
E.H. Harriman Award for safety in Group B (line-haul railroads with between four and 15 million employee hours per year). KCS received the Silver award for 1999, the Gold award for 2000, and the silver award again for 2005.
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Presidents of Kansas City Southern:
