Complex sentence: Accordingly, the NBR sponsored the Forth Bridge project which would give them a direct link independent of the Caledonian Railway; a conference at York in 1881 set up the Forth Bridge Railway Committee, to which the NBR contributed 35% of the cost.
Split into simpler sentences: Accordingly, the NBR sponsored the Forth Bridge project which would give them a direct link independent of the Caledonian Railway. A conference at York in 1881 set up the Forth Bridge Railway Committee, to which the NBR contributed 35% of the cost.