Nine homes will have to be demolished to make way for the €185 million Galway city outer bypass. Demolition work is due to start by the end of next year or early 2007, the National Roads Authority (NRA) has confirmed.
The homeowners, who have already been contacted by the NRA, have no option but to move house so that the bypass development can go ahead.
Six of the houses to be demolished are along the route of the new road, while the other three are so close to the new road as to make it impractical for people to continue living there, according to a spokesperson for the NRA.
Four of the houses facing demolition are located on the western end of the project - at Gortacleva and Killeen - with five others to go on the eastern end at Ballindooley and Ballintemple.
The NRA spokesman said the process of demolishing the houses would not start until owners were served with a "Notice to Treat".
He said that home-owners would get the market value of their houses while compensation could also apply to such factors as disruption and severance.
Those affected would also qualify for a special "removal allowance" to allow for expenses relating to moving out and the costs of acquiring new property.
:quality(70)/s3.amazonaws.com/arc-authors/irishtimes/967d7da1-75bc-4fdc-be72-8065d2394658.png)