Northern Ireland Railways (NIR), formerly and briefly referred to as Ulster Transport Railways (UTR) is the railway division of the state-owned transport company Translink responsible for running the railway network in Northern Ireland. NIR was formed in 1968 when it took over from the Ulster Transport Authority which operated since 1948. Recent years, like most railways, have seen a decline in the mileage of the system; for instance from 1500 km (900 miles) in the 1950s to 342 km (210 miles) at present.
There are two important lines: the line between Belfast and Derry, and that between Belfast and the border with the Republic of Ireland to Dundalk. On the latter route NIR operates a joint service of fast trains (the Enterprise service) between Belfast and Dublin in conjunction with the national railway company of the Republic of Ireland, Iarnród Éireann. NIR also operates a branch line between Coleraine - Portrush, and suburban services from Belfast to Bangor, Larne, and Portadown.
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