Progress Rail and Wabtec just did what many companies do when the legal bills start stacking up: they made it go away.
Progress Rail, the Caterpillar-owned locomotive builder, and Wabtec said they’ve reached a settlement in an antitrust case, ending the dispute without dragging it through more court fights. As usual in these deals, nobody’s admitting fault, nobody’s “liable,” and everybody suddenly agrees it’s in the best interest of customers and the public to stop spending time yelling at each other in front of a judge.
The companies also made a point of noting what anyone in the freight world already knows: both are suppliers to Class I railroads and other customers, including Tier 4 long-haul freight locomotives and cab components. Translation: they still have to do business in the same ecosystem, with the same customers, in a market where nobody wins by keeping a lawsuit on life support.
Bottom line: the case is settled, the paperwork will say “no admission,” and both sides are heading back to the real competition — selling locomotives and the parts that keep them rolling.
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