Editing Northern Counties Committee (section)

===Building the line===
Lanyon immediately began preparations for building the line and placed advertisements for tenders for the construction of the railway. The contract was awarded to [[William Dargan]]. Orders were placed for rails and sleepers and locomotives were ordered from [[Bury, Curtis, and Kennedy|Bury, Curtis and Kennedy]].

Meanwhile, the directors were recruiting staff. A secretary was appointed in 1845, Ellis Rowland was appointed locomotive superintendent in 1847 and Thomas Houseman Higgin became manager<ref>{{Citation |last=Hulse |first=Lynn |title=Higgin, Letitia [Lily] (1837–1913), author and embroiderer |date=2024-08-08 |work=Oxford Dictionary of National Biography |url=https://www.oxforddnb.com/display/10.1093/odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-90000382574 |access-date=2024-08-10 |publisher=Oxford University Press |language=en |doi=10.1093/odnb/9780198614128.013.90000382574 |isbn=978-0-19-861412-8|url-access=subscription }}</ref> in May 1848.

By the spring of 1847, portions of the line were ready for ballasting and, as neither Dargan nor the B&BR had any locomotives, a second-hand engine was obtained from the [[Ulster Railway]] to carry out the work. While it had been hoped to open the line in November 1847, this was put back by the need to raise the embankment along the shore of [[Belfast Lough]].

Stations were built along the main line and the Carrickfergus branch. The most impressive was that at Belfast where Lanyon used his architectural talents to create an imposing classical design.

====Board of Trade inspections====
Eventually the line was deemed to be ready for inspection by the [[Board of Trade]] on 10 January 1848. Captain [[Robert Michael Laffan]] [[Royal Engineers|RE]] carried out the inspection and issued an unfavourable report dated 3 March. He was much concerned that the [[permanent way (history)|permanent way]] was very roughly laid and unballasted in places; neither were there any signals. Furthermore, he deemed that a bridge had been constructed in a hasty manner with the result that, when tested, it exhibited very great deflection. Other defects included poor drainage in cuttings and a lack of mileposts. Captain Laffan's opinion was that it was therefore unsafe to allow the line to be opened.

Lanyon and Dargan were keen to retrieve their reputations and there was a period of furious activity as they worked to correct deficiencies identified in the [[Board of Trade]] report. The directors carried out their own inspection of the line on 6 April and felt sufficiently confident about what they had seen to ask Captain Laffan to make a second inspection. This he did and his report of 8 April was more encouraging than the previous one. Although there were some strictures, Captain [[Henry Drury Harness]] RE, secretary to the Railway Department of the Board of Trade formally advised the directors of the {{abbr|B&BR|Belfast and Ballymena Railway}} on 14 April that the railway could be opened for public service. However, authorisation had been sent previously by [[telegraph]] and the railway was already at work.