Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNI) 8-K Burlington Northern Santa Fe Reports

Exhibit 99.1

Investor Contact:	Marsha Morgan	FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
	(817) 352-6452
Media Contact:	Richard Russack
	(817) 867-6425

Burlington Northern Santa Fe Reports

Record First-Quarter Revenues and EPS

• Quarterly earnings of $1.09 per diluted share were 31 percent higher than first-quarter 2005 earnings of $0.83 per diluted share.

• Quarterly freight revenues increased to $3.37 billion, or 16 percent, on 5-percent volume growth compared with the same 2005 period.

• Quarterly operating income of $792 million increased $158 million, or 25 percent, compared with the same 2005 period.

• Quarterly operating ratio improved to 76.5 percent from 78.1 percent for the same quarter of the prior year.

FORT WORTH, Texas, April 25, 2006—Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corporation (BNSF) (NYSE: BNI) today reported record first-quarter earnings of $1.09 per diluted share, a 31-percent increase over first-quarter 2005 earnings of $0.83 per diluted share.

First-quarter 2006 freight revenues increased $470 million, or 16 percent, to a first-quarter record of $3.37 billion compared with $2.90 billion in the prior year. The 16-percent increase in revenue is attributable to growth in unit volumes, rates and fuel surcharges. Revenue for the first quarter of 2006 included fuel surcharges of approximately $350 million compared with approximately $170 million in the first quarter of 2005.

“Demand for rail service continued to be very strong with growth spread across each of our four business groups,” said Matthew K. Rose, BNSF Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer. “Overall unit volume increased 5 percent in the first quarter compared with the same 2005 period. This increase was led by intermodal unit growth of 6 percent and coal carload and tonnage growth of 5 percent. As a result, we achieved record first-quarter operating income of $792 million, while further improving our operating ratio.”

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Compared with the first quarter of 2005, BNSF experienced double-digit revenue increases in each of the Company’s four business groups. Consumer Products revenues increased $190 million, or 17 percent, to $1,320 million, primarily due to strong revenue increases in the international and domestic intermodal sectors. Industrial Products revenues increased $125 million, or 19 percent, to $772 million primarily due to double-digit revenue growth in the building products, construction products and petroleum products sectors. Coal revenues rose by $82 million, or 14 percent, to $680 million due in part to record loadings of 67 million tons of coal. Agricultural Products revenues were up $73 million, or 14 percent, to $597 million, due to revenue strength in corn, wheat and ethanol.

Operating expenses for the first quarter of 2006 were $2.67 billion compared with first-quarter 2005 operating expenses of $2.35 billion. The $323 million increase in operating expenses includes a $169 million increase in fuel expense primarily reflecting higher prices. The Company also completed the previously announced sale of a line segment to the state of New Mexico resulting in a $22 million gain, or $0.04 per share, which is reflected as a reduction in operating expenses.

First-quarter operating income increased $158 million, or 25 percent, to $792 million compared with the first quarter of 2005. Continuing the trend in improving the Company’s operating ratio, BNSF’s quarterly operating ratio decreased to 76.5 percent from 78.1 percent for the same quarter of the prior year.

In late February 2006, the Company settled $600 million in prepaid forward transactions entered into in December 2005 to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock. This transaction had no impact on shares outstanding at the end of 2005; however, upon settlement in late February 2006, it reduced the number of shares outstanding by approximately 8 million shares.

BNSF’s subsidiary, BNSF Railway Company, operates one of the largest railroad networks in North America, with about 32,000 route miles in 28 states and two Canadian provinces. The railway is among the world’s top transporters of intermodal traffic, moves more grain than any other North American railroad, transports the components of many of the products we depend on daily, and hauls enough low-sulphur coal to generate about ten percent of the electricity produced in the United States. BNSF is an industry leader in Web-enabling a variety of customer transactions at www.bnsf.com.

Financial information follows.

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Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corporation

Consolidated Income Information

(Dollars in millions, except per share data)

	Three Months Ended March 31,
	2006			2005
Operating revenues
Freight revenues	$	3,369		$	2,899
Other revenues		94			83
Total operating revenues		3,463			2,982
Operating expenses
Compensation and benefits		919			853
Fuel		561			392
Purchased services		460			417
Depreciation and amortization		277			263
Equipment rents		231			213
Materials and other		223			210
Total operating expenses		2,671			2,348
Operating income		792			634
Interest expense		121			109
Other expense, net		9			7
Income before income taxes		662			518
Income tax expense		252			197
Net income	$	410		$	321
Diluted earnings per share	$	1.09		$	0.83
Diluted average shares outstanding (in millions)		376.7			384.6
Operating ratio (a)		76.5	%		78.1	%

(a) Calculated as total operating expenses less other revenues divided by freight revenues.

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Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corporation

Consolidated Balance Sheet Information

(Dollars in millions, except per share amounts)

	March 31, 2006			December 31, 2005
Assets
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	88		$	75
Accounts receivable, net		518			678
Materials and supplies		434			396
Current portion of deferred income taxes		205			218
Current portion of fuel-hedging asset		275			303
Other current assets		238			210
Total current assets		1,758			1,880
Property and equipment, net		26,741			26,551
Other assets		2,173			1,873
Total assets	$	30,672		$	30,304
Liabilities and stockholders’ equity
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable and other current liabilities	$	2,739		$	2,773
Long-term debt due within one year		446			456
Total current liabilities		3,185			3,229
Long-term debt and commercial paper		6,759			6,698
Deferred income taxes		7,940			7,916
Casualty and environmental liabilities		865			878
Minimum pension liability		417			417
Employee separation costs		101			107
Other liabilities		1,579			1,551
Total liabilities		20,846			20,796
Stockholders’ equity:
Common stock and additional paid-in capital		6,826			6,707
Retained earnings		8,382			8,045
Treasury stock and other		(5,382	)		(5,244	)
Total stockholders’ equity		9,826			9,508
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity	$	30,672		$	30,304
Book value per share	$	26.96		$	25.59
Common shares outstanding (in millions)		364.4			371.6
Net debt to total capitalization (a)		42.0	%		42.7	%

(a) Net debt is calculated as total debt less cash and cash equivalents, and capitalization is calculated as the sum of net debt and total stockholders’ equity.

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Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corporation

Consolidated Cash Flow Information*

(Dollars in millions)

	Three Months Ended March 31,
	2006			2005
Operating activities
Net income	$	410		$	321
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization		277			263
Deferred income taxes		55			72
Employee separation costs paid		(6	)		(8	)
Long-term casualty and environmental liabilities, net		(18	)		(34	)
Other, net		(12	)		(17	)
Changes in working capital		75			(29	)
Net cash provided by operating activities		781			568
Investing activities
Capital expenditures		(455	)		(326	)
Other, net		(278	)		(217	)
Net cash used for investing activities		(733	)		(543	)
Financing activities
Dividends paid		(74	)		(64	)
Purchase of BNSF common stock		(114	)		(225	)
Other, net		153			57
Net cash used for financing activities		(35	)		(232	)
Increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents		13			(207	)
Cash and cash equivalents:
Beginning of period		75			322
End of period	$	88		$	115

* Certain prior period amounts have been reclassified to conform with the current period presentation.

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Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corporation

Operating Statistics

	Three Months Ended March 31,
	2006		2005
Cars/units (in thousands)		2,521		2,408
Average revenues per car/unit	$	1,336	$	1,204
Revenue ton miles (in millions)		153,011		145,821
Gross ton miles (in millions)		268,180		258,729
RTM/GTM		0.57		0.56
Freight revenue/thousand RTM	$	22.02	$	19.88
Operating expense/thousand RTM	$	17.46	$	16.10
Freight revenue/thousand GTM	$	12.56	$	11.20
Operating expense/thousand GTM	$	9.96	$	9.08
Compensation and benefits/thousand GTM	$	3.43	$	3.30
Average employees		40,673		38,322
Period end employees		41,265		39,014
Thousand RTM/average employee		3,762		3,805
Thousand GTM/average employee		6,594		6,751
Gallons of fuel used (in millions)		360		346
Average price per gallon of fuel (cents) (a)		155.8		113.3
GTM/gallon of fuel		745		748
Freight train miles (in millions)		42		41
GTM/freight train hours (in thousands)		121		126
Route miles operated		32,029		32,281

(a) Includes handling, taxes and hedge effect.

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Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corporation

Revenue Statistics by Commodity

	Three Months Ended March 31,				Percent Change
	2006		2005
Revenues (in millions)
Intermodal	$	1,103	$	956	15.4	%
Automotive		113		92	22.8
Other Consumer Products		104		82	26.8
Total Consumer Products		1,320		1,130	16.8
Industrial Products		772		647	19.3
Coal		680		598	13.7
Agricultural Products		597		524	13.9
Total freight revenue		3,369		2,899	16.2
Other revenue		94		83	13.3
Total revenues	$	3,463	$	2,982	16.1	%
Cars/units(in thousands)
Intermodal		1,216		1,146	6.1	%
Automotive		44		43	2.3
Other Consumer Products		48		46	4.3
Total Consumer Products		1,308		1,235	5.9
Industrial Products		390		386	1.0
Coal		581		554	4.9
Agricultural Products		242		233	3.9
Total cars/units		2,521		2,408	4.7	%
Average revenue per car/unit
Intermodal	$	907	$	834	8.8	%
Automotive		2,568		2,140	20.0
Other Consumer Products		2,167		1,783	21.5
Total Consumer Products		1,009		915	10.3
Industrial Products		1,979		1,676	18.1
Coal		1,170		1,079	8.4
Agricultural Products		2,467		2,249	9.7
Average revenue per car/unit	$	1,336	$	1,204	11.0	%
Revenue ton miles (in millions)
Intermodal		29,849		28,935	3.2	%
Automotive		1,481		1,394	6.2
Other Consumer Products		3,435		3,144	9.2
Total Consumer Products		34,765		33,473	3.9
Industrial Products		27,369		25,677	6.6
Coal		63,049		58,961	6.9
Agricultural Products		27,828		27,710	0.4
Total revenue ton miles		153,011		145,821	4.9	%
Freight revenue per thousand ton miles
Intermodal	$	36.95	$	33.04	11.8	%
Automotive		76.30		66.00	15.6
Other Consumer Products		30.28		26.08	16.1
Total Consumer Products		37.97		33.76	12.5
Industrial Products		28.21		25.20	11.9
Coal		10.79		10.14	6.4
Agricultural Products		21.45		18.91	13.4
Freight revenue per thousand ton miles	$	22.02	$	19.88	10.8	%

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Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corporation

Capital Expenditures and Track Maintenance*

	Three Months Ended March 31,
	2006		2005
Capital expenditures(in millions)
Maintenance of way
Rail	$	55	$	37
Ties		64		62
Surfacing		38		28
Other		95		75
Total maintenance of way		252		202
Mechanical		43		29
Information services		23		23
Other		24		15
Total maintenance of business		342		269
Terminal and line expansion		113		57
Total capital expenditures	$	455	$	326
Track maintenance
Track miles of rail laid
Maintenance of business		107		65
Expansion projects		31		21
Total		138		86
Cross ties inserted (thousands)
Maintenance of business		573		485
Expansion projects		92		56
Total		665		541
Track resurfaced (miles)		2,531		2,107

* Certain prior period amounts have been reclassified to conform with the current period presentation.

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