The Panhandle community of Sopchoppy extends a cordial invitation to area residents, visitors and rail fans for the annual Depot Days event, which takes place Saturday, Sept. 12, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The fully restored Sopchoppy Depot is the last remaining train station in Florida of the old Georgia, Florida & Alabama Railroad. It will be open throughout the event, with an array of historic exhibits and memorabilia depicting the town’s railroad heritage. Also planned is a classic car parade down Rose Street at 10 a.m., and there will be food and craft vendors on hand, plus entertainment.
The Big Bend Model Railroad Association will have trains on display, including operating layouts located in the Towles House, the historic home next door to the depot. Across the street is Depot Park, with walking paths, gardens and a playground.
For more information, email inquiries and questions to discoversopchoppy@gmail.com and remember to visit the city’s Facebook page.
Union Pacific, Norfolk Southern add merger provisions
Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern announced in late July that they have enhanced their merger application by offering customer protections that go beyond those provided in any prior rail merger, they said.
The new commitments were submitted with the supplemental information the Surface Transportation Board requested when it accepted the companies’ merger application as complete last May.
Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena said the provisions are intended to give customers “faster, more reliable and efficient coast-to-coast service from day one and create cost savings that will flow through to consumers.”
The commitments will have the effect of doubling the number of eligible shipments and extending certain benefits to bulk unit train shippers, thereby creating more opportunities for customers to benefit from the merger.
In the event that service performance declines during merger integration, customers will be able to obtain temporary access to alternative rail service—an additional safeguard to help keep freight moving if unexpected service problems arise.
Also included is customer access to a new rate relief process if the merger’s public benefits are not delivered in a timely fashion, the railroads said.
With this latest filing, Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern have completed their responses to the STB’s requests for supplemental information. The railroads said they expect the transaction to be completed in mid-2027, following STB review and approval.
Two of the nation’s biggest Class I railroads, Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern officially announced their merger plan July 29, 2025. They say the deal will create the first transcontinental railroad in the U.S. and give their customers access to a coast-to-coast network of more than 50,000 route miles across 43 states.
