Northern Counties Committee
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The Northern Counties Committee (NCC) came about on 1 July 1903 as the result of the Midland Railway taking over the Belfast and Northern Counties Railway. At the 1923 Grouping the Committee became part of the London Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS); with the nationalisation of the railways in Britain in 1948 the line passed to the British Transport Commission and the following year, 1949, it was sold to the Ulster Transport Authority (UTA).
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[edit] Belfast and Northern Counties Railway
The Belfast and Northern Counties Railway was itself the amalgamation of various Irish railways. It was originally known as the Belfast and Ballymena Railway , which had been incorporated on 21 July 1845: the first portion was opened 11 April 1848. On 15 May 1860 the Railway became known as the Belfast and Northern Counties Railway (B&NCR), a title it retained until the amalgamation of 1903. The following independent railways became part of the B&NCR after its incorporation (opening date(s)/amalgamation date):
- Ballymena, Ballymoney, Coleraine and Portrush Junction Railway (November 1855/January 1861)
- Londonderry and Coleraine Railway (December 1852 and July 1853/July 1871)
- Ballymena, Cushendall and Red Bay Railway 1875 & 1876/October 1884)
- Ballymena and Larne Railway (August 1877, June & August 1878/July 1889)
- Carrickfergus and Larne Railway (October 1862/July 1890)
- Draperstown Railway (July 1883/July 1895)
- Derry Central Railway (29 miles; 46km) (February 1880/September 1901)
- Limavady and Dungiven Railway (10.75 miles; 17km) (July 1883/February 1907)
- Londonderry and Strabane section, part of Donegal Railway (narrow gauge) (14.25 miles; 23km) vested in B&NCR May 1906 c64 miles (102km) of track
- Portstewart Tramway (June 1882/June 1897)
Total mileage (1911): 263.25 miles (421km)
[edit] Statistics
- In 1910 the Committee owned 79 locomotives; 364 passenger train vehicles; two rail motor cars; and 2328 goods vehicles
- Locomotives were painted "invisible green" (a very dark bronze green that looked almost black) picked out with yellow, blue and vermilion; passenger rolling stock, lake, picked out with gold and vermilion
- The Portstewart Tramway owned 3 locomotives and four other vehicles
- The Committee owned three hotels: Midland Station Hotel, Belfast; Northern Counties Hotel, Portrush; and Laharna Hotel, Larne
- All details in this section are from Railway Year Book 1912 (Railway Publishing Company)
[edit] Midland Railway (Northern Counties Committee)
The amalgamation of the BNCR with the Midland Railway took place from 1 July 1903. The railway retained a great deal of autonomy and was run by a management committee based in Belfast - the Northern Counties Committee (NCC). Locomotive and rolling stock liveries remained very much as they had been under the BNCR except for the adoption of the Midland Railway coat of arms and NCC monogram.
[edit] London, Midland and Scottish Railway (Northern Counties Committee)
The Midland Railway, and with it the NCC, was grouped by the Railways Act 1921 into the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) in 1923. On grouping, it was recorded as having 201 miles (322km) of Irish broad gauge and 64 miles (102km) of 3ft narrow gauge track. The LMS started painting NCC locomotives and carriages into crimson lake (also known as Midland red).
[edit] Nationalisation and sale
On 1 April 1948, the LMS was nationalised and passed to the Railway Executive of the British Transport Commission. The NCC became known as the Railway Executive (NCC) and was operationally part of the London Midland Region of British Railways.
The Stormont Government purchased the NCC in 1949 for £2,668,000, and the NCC became part of the Ulster Transport Authority from 1 April 1949.
