Watco Railroad Company Holdings, Inc., a subsidiary of Watco Companies, L.L.C., has agreed to purchase the stock of short line Ann Arbor Railroad, Inc.
The transaction will close into a voting trust whose trustee will control the railroad until the U.S. Surface Transportation Board approves the transaction; Watco anticipates approval in late January or early February 2013.
The Ann Arbor Railroad operates 50 miles of mainline track between Ann Arbor, Mich., and Toledo, Ohio, and has significant rail terminals in the Toledo area focused on automobile loading for Chrysler, General Motors and Ford. The railroad interchanges with Class I railroads Canadian National, CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern and short lines Great Lakes Central, Indiana & Ohio and Wheeling & Lake Erie.
“This acquisition expands our rail network in the State of Michigan and allows us to build stronger relationships with our customers while also giving Watco the opportunity to serve the State of Ohio and its important industrial base,” said Ed McKechnie, Watco’s chief commercial officer, in a written statement.