The line was to be abandoned by the newly formed Burlington Northern & Santa Fe (BNSF). This would have left Washington County Oklahoma including Copan without rail service. This line also served the Montgomery Kansas towns of Caney, Havana, Wayside, Bolton, Independence, and Cherryvale. WATCO purchased the line from BNSF post merger, and BNSF still has trackage rights. The line is now Southern Kansas & Oklahoma Line (SKOL) now headquartered in Cherryvale Kansas. .As a consequence of the merger, BNSF continued to maintain the Afton Subdivision that comes off the Cherokee Subdivision in Afton Oklahoma, and the Fort Scott Subdivision from Springfield Missouri. There is no Class 1 rail service in Washington County Oklahoma and Copan.