1982: UP and Missouri Pacific Railroad merged through UP’s acquisition of MoPac, which continued to exist as a legal entity until UP acquired and merged
with the Southern Pacific in 1996.
1984: Dedication of the $40 million Downing B. Jenks diesel locomotive repair shop at 800 Pike Avenue. In attendance was Jenks, Governor Bill Clinton, and John C. Kenefick, UP chairman, who said, “We are here to stay,” thus securing North Little Rock’s continuation as an important railroad center.
1984: UP and MoPac began replacing cabooses with portable 35-pound electronic monitors that fit over the last car’s coupler.
1987: Hundreds of UP employees transferred to North Little Rock from Omaha, Nebraska; Council Bluffs, Iowa; Salt Lake City, Utah, and other points.
2010: The Surface Transportation Board granted authority to UP to abandon the Junction Bridge and 0.32 miles of track that had served the Mountaire feed mill, which closed in 2008. The board also gave UP authority to abandon the 4.04-mile Camp Robinson spur, which was converted to a bicycle-pedestrian trail.
2022: UP began building hybrid diesel and electric powered locomotives.
2023: UP began replacing wood rail ties with composite ties made from recycled plastic and glass fiber.