Editing British Rail (section)

=== Nationalisation in 1948 ===
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[[File:70013 Oliver Cromwell Carlisle Kingmoor.jpg|thumb|[[BR Standard Class 7 70013 Oliver Cromwell|BR steam locomotive 70013 ''Oliver Cromwell'']]]]
The rail transport system in Great Britain developed during the 19th century. After the grouping of 1923 under the [[Railways Act 1921]], there were four large railway companies, each dominating its own geographic area: the [[Great Western Railway]] (GWR), the [[London, Midland and Scottish Railway]] (LMS), the [[London and North Eastern Railway]] (LNER) and the [[Southern Railway (England)|Southern Railway]] (SR). During [[World War I]], the railways were under state control, which continued until 1921. Complete [[nationalisation]] had been considered, and the [[Railways Act 1921]]<ref>{{cite hansard |title = The State and the Railways |url = https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/lords/1920/aug/03/the-state-and-the-railways |series= [[Hansard|Parliamentary Debates (Hansard)]] |house = [[House of Lords]] |date = 3 August 1920 |access-date = 14 March 2019 |column_start = 711 |column_end = 713 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090719130758/http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/lords/1920/aug/03/the-state-and-the-railways |archive-date = 19 July 2009 |url-status = live }}</ref> is sometimes considered as a precursor to that, but the concept was rejected. Nationalisation was subsequently carried out after [[World War II]], under the [[Transport Act 1947]]. This Act made provision for the nationalisation of the network as part of a policy of nationalising public services by [[Clement Attlee]]'s [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour]] Government. British Railways came into existence as the [[business name]] of the [[Railway Executive]] of the [[British Transport Commission]] (BTC) on 1 January 1948 when it took over the assets of the Big Four.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/docSummary.php?docID=67 |title = Transport Act 1947 |author = Her Majesty's Government |year = 1947 |via = The Railways Archive |publisher = Her Majesty's Stationery Office |access-date = 25 November 2006 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120325224406/http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/docsummary.php?docID=67 |archive-date = 25 March 2012 |url-status = live  }}</ref>

There were also [[joint railway]]s between the Big Four and a few light railways to consider (see [[list of constituents of British Railways]]). Excluded from nationalisation were industrial lines like the [[Oxfordshire Ironstone Railway]]. The [[London Underground]] also became publicly owned, becoming the [[London Transport Executive]] of the British Transport Commission. The [[Bicester Military Railway]] was already run by the government. The electric [[Liverpool Overhead Railway]] was also excluded from [[nationalized|nationalisation]].<ref>{{cite web |url = https://www.citymetric.com/transport/liverpool-overhead-railway-was-legendary-it-worth-rebuilding-3575 |title = The Liverpool Overhead Railway was legendary – but is it worth rebuilding? |website = citymetric.com |date = 4 January 2018 |access-date = 25 April 2018 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180426080003/https://www.citymetric.com/transport/liverpool-overhead-railway-was-legendary-it-worth-rebuilding-3575 |archive-date = 26 April 2018 |url-status = live}}</ref>

The Railway Executive was conscious that some lines on the (then very dense) network were unprofitable and hard to justify socially, and a programme of closures began almost immediately after nationalisation. However, the general financial position of BR became gradually poorer until an operating loss was recorded in 1955. The Executive itself had been abolished in 1953 by the Conservative government, and control of BR transferred to the parent Commission. Other changes to the British Transport Commission at the same time included the return of road haulage to the private sector; however, BR retained its own (smaller) in-house road haulage service.

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