Editing British Transport Police (section)

===Early days===
[[File:Flickr - Duncan~ - Police.jpg|thumb|BTP Police station "blue lamp"]]
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Private British railway companies employed detectives and police almost from the outset of passenger services in 1826. These companies were unified into four in 1923 then into a single nationalised company in 1947 by the Transport Act, which also created the [[British Transport Commission]] (BTC). On 1 January 1949 the '''British Transport Commission Police''' (BTCP) were created by the British Transport Commission Act 1949<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1994/8/contents/data.htm |title=Transport Police (Jurisdiction) Act 1994 |website=Legislation.gov.uk |access-date=17 February 2019}}</ref> which combined the already-existing police forces inherited from the pre-nationalisation railways by [[British Railways]] as well as the [[London Passenger Transport Board|London Transport]] Police, canal police and several minor dock forces.  In 1957 the Maxwell-Johnson enquiry found that policing requirements for the railway could not be met by territorial forces and that it was essential that a specialist police force be retained. On 1 January 1962 the British Transport Commission Police ceased to cover [[British Waterways]] property<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.btp.police.uk/History%20Society/Publications/History%20Society/Constituent%20Force/Canal%20Forces/Sharpness%20Dock%20Police%20%20(1874%201948).htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040614073125/http://www.btp.police.uk/History%20Society/Publications/History%20Society/Constituent%20Force/Canal%20Forces/Sharpness%20Dock%20Police%20%20%281874%201948%29.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=14 June 2004 |title=Sharpness Dock Police (1874–1948) |access-date=28 August 2007}}</ref> and exactly a year later when the BTC was abolished the name of the force was amended to the British Transport Police.