Which railroad was acquired by the Union Pacific Corporation and became part of one of the world's largest transportation companies?
Western Pacific Railroad The Western Pacific Railroad (reporting mark WP) was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was formed in 1903 as an attempt to break the near-monopoly the Southern Pacific Railroad had on rail service into northern California. WP's Feather River Route directly competed with SP's portion of the Overland Route for rail traffic between Salt Lake City/Ogden, Utah and Oakland, California for nearly 80 years. In 1983, the Western Pacific was acquired by the Union Pacific Corporation and it was soon merged into their Union Pacific Railroad. The Western Pacific was one of the original operators of the "California Zephyr".
Modesto and Empire Traction Company The Modesto and Empire Traction Company (reporting mark MET) is a Class III short-line railroad operating in California's San Joaquin Valley. It is owned by the Beard Land & Investment Company and the Beard family has always owned the railroad. The Beards have also created the Beard Industrial Park where the MET's customers are located. The railroad was unique in that it had operated exclusively with GE 70-ton switchers built between 1947-1955 for nearly 50 years(a former Southern Pacific EMD SW1500 switcher has been added to the roster as of late). The MET operates on 5 miles (8 km) of track, providing switching services in the Beard Industrial Park. The MET interchanges with the Union Pacific (ex-Southern Pacific Transportation Company) at Modesto and with the BNSF Railway (ex-Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway) at Empire.