USA: Watco is to acquire the 650 km Great Lakes Central Railroad, which runs north from Ann Arbor in Michigan to Cadillac with branches to Thompsonville, Traverse City and Petoskey.
It interchanges with CSX, Mid-Michigan Railroad, Huron & Eastern Railway, Canadian National and Watco’s Ann Arbor Railroad, which provides connectivity to Norfolk Southern. Traffic includes soybeans, corn and other agricultural products, fertilisers, plastics and LPG.
The route was operated as the Tuscola & Saginaw Bay Railway until 2006 when the line was bought by Federated Railways Inc and renamed. Watco took a minority holding in the parent company Federated Capital Holdings in 2013.
‘The Great Lakes Central Railroad has been a vital part of Michigan’s transportation network and both my father, Louis Ferris Jr, and I have been deeply passionate about its role in connecting industries and communities’, said GLC President & CEO Jennifer Ferris on March 6. ‘With Watco as a long-time partner since 2013, we are confident they will honour the legacy we have built while continuing to serve Michigan’s industries and communities with the same dedication and excellence.’
