Complex sentence: The direct link between Elgin and Rothes opened to passengers on 1 January 1862 (freight traffic had opened a day earlier) while the bridge over the River Spey was completed on 1 June 1863 joining the GNSR controlled track at Craigellachie on 1 July.
Split into simpler sentences: The direct link between Elgin and Rothes opened to passengers on 1 January 1862 (freight traffic had opened a day earlier). The bridge over the River Spey was completed on 1 June 1863 and joined the GNSR controlled track at Craigellachie on 1 July.