Tracing the Markethill-Newry railway line on Google satellite and street view

Reopening the railway line from Armagh to Markethill seems relatively feasible since so much of the old right of way is untouched. Remarkably, the right-of-way through the middle of Markethill also seems to be mostly undeveloped with the exception of a housing development (which is beside some fields that could be used instead) and a supermarket extension that presents a trickier but not insurmountable problem. The original Markethill station seems to be a private home and as such is in excellent condition, but it may be possible to construct a new station building opposite it. The line from Markethill to Newry is also mostly untouched apart from a handful of homes on the old tracks and some sections of the Newry-Armagh Road that were built on top of it. The Lissummon tunnel, the longest railway tunnel in Ireland at a mile long, still seems to be in good condition. There is an excellent blog post about the history of this tunnel, and an adventurous hike through it, at http://www.ni-wild.co.uk/blog/2016/03... Getting the line connected to the existing Belfast-Dublin line does not seem to be a problem, however there is also the option of picking up the old line that ran into the centre of Newry. From the satellite view this seemed achievable as far as the old Edward St Station that is currently used by Translink as a bus depot that could easily be relocated elsewhere, however I have been informed that apparently a leisure centre has since been built on top of the tracks, blocking the path to Edward St. South of Edward St it is difficult to see a way of getting the line reopened to the old split that once sent trains to Carlingford and Warrenpoint. In theory it may be possible to get the line as far south as the Southern Regional College campus using level crossings, but this would be more justifiable were it possible to extend the line all the way through to the other side of the city. A reopened Edward St station connected to the current line to Belfast could be achieved independently of any connection to Markethill and Armagh. However if both could be achieved then Newry city centre would be connected by rail once again to Markethill, Armagh, and Portadown, as well as Portadown via the more direct route via Poyntzpass. Newry would still be connected to Dublin by the existing station that is halfway to Bessbrook. Either way, these videos highlight the importance of keeping old railway rights-of-way clear of any development that could impede future efforts to use these routes either as greenways or as restored railways.