The parent company of a short line railroad that services Hutchinson and Reno County is getting bigger. Watco Company LLC announced that they’re purchasing the controlling ownership of the Wisconsin and Southern Railroad. Financial terms were not disclosed. Watco, based in Pittsburg, Kansas, is also the owner of the Kansas and Oklahoma Railroad which serves western and central Kansas, and has a line running from Geneseo to Hutchinson and then on to Wichita.

Watco is the largest short line company in America with 23-railroads in 18-states and a workforce of more than 2200 employees.

Wisconsin and Southern has 250-employees with 700-miles of track in Wisconsin and Illinois and is the second largest railroad in Wisconsin.

No layoffs are planned as a result of the agreement and the headquarters will remain in Milwaukee.