(January 26, 2007)--Union Pacific's 64 percent jump in fourth-quarter profit may have pleased investors, but it didn't definitively settle the question of which railroad is the nation's largest.

The Omaha, Neb.-based railroad says it earned $485 million or $1.78 a share.

UP and Fort Worth-based rival Burlington Northern Santa Fe have sparred for years over which should be known as the nation's largest railroad.

Earlier this week, Burlington Northern renewed the argument when its earnings report revealed it was the nation's largest railroad by freight revenue in the third quarter of 2006.

Union Pacific held the edge in fourth-quarter freight revenue.

Burlington Northern's claim also doesn't consider total revenue, where Union Pacific also holds the fourth-quarter edge.

But Union Pacific spokeswoman Kathryn Blackwell said those revenue figures shouldn't matter.

She said the Omaha-based railroad bases its claim on the 32,400 miles of track it operates.

Burlington Northern remains close there, too, with about 32,000 miles of track.

The rest of the US railroad universe includes CSX, Norfolk Southern and Canadian National Railway.

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