Kansas City Southern Railway
The Kansas City Southern Railway Company (reporting mark KCS) was an American Class I railroad. Founded in 1887, it operated in 10 Midwestern and Southeastern U.S. states: Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas. KCS had the shortest north-south rail route between Kansas City, Missouri, and several key ports along the Gulf of Mexico.
KCS system map (trackage rights in purple), including KCSM. | |
KCS 3999, an EMD SD70ACe | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Parent company | Kansas City Southern |
| Headquarters | Kansas City, Missouri |
| Reporting mark | KCS |
| Locale | Midwestern and Southeastern United States |
| Founder | Arthur Stillwell |
| Dates of operation | 1887–2023 |
| Predecessor | Kansas City Suburban Belt Railroad Kansas City, Pittsburg and Gulf Railroad |
| Successor | CPKC |
| Technical | |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge |
| Length | 3,984 miles (6,412 km) |
| Other | |
| Website | kcsouthern.com |
The focus of the routes was the fastest way to connect Kansas City to salt water ports (it was 800 miles from Kansas City to the Gulf of Mexico compared to 1,400 miles between Kansas City and the Atlantic Ocean ports.
KCS operated over a railroad system consisting of 3,984 route miles (6,412 km) that extend south to the Mexico–United States border at which point another KCS-operated railroad, Kansas City Southern de México (KCSM), hauls freight into northeastern and central Mexico and to several Gulf of Mexico ports and the Pacific Port of Lázaro Cárdenas.
Canadian Pacific Railway purchased KCS in December 2021 for US$31 billion. On April 14, 2023, the railroads were merged to form Canadian Pacific Kansas City, the first and only to directly serve Canada, Mexico and the United States.