(The Center Square) – A coalition of conservative and free-market groups is urging federal regulators to approve the proposed merger between Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern, saying the deal will strengthen the U.S. economy and advance President Donald Trump’s “America First” industrial agenda.

In a letter to the Surface Transportation Board on Friday, over a dozen groups endorsed the merger, which would link 50,000 route miles and 100 ports across 43 states into a single transcontinental rail system.