Plans for a €40 million bypass of the heritage village of Adare in Co Limerick were unveiled yesterday.
Limerick County Council presented its preferred option for a seven-kilometre stretch of road designed to remove a major bottleneck on the Limerick to Kerry national primary route.
Locals who will be affected by the bypass have been invited to discuss plans for the road with council officials and engineers.
Planners initially looked at 12 route options. Their final decision followed detailed assessment and public consultation on the basis of engineering, environmental and economic factors.
Although the route selected will cost marginally more than some others on the shortlist, it was considered the best in terms of overall impact on the local population and hinterland.
The council's senior executive engineer, Jari Howard, said yesterday that 65 per cent of locals supported the council's selection.
"We have selected a 300-metre wide band in which we will try to fit the road in such a way that it avoids houses, farms and areas of archaeological interest. We are now inviting people who live within this 300-metre band to come and talk to us to discuss plans for the bypass."
The chosen route starts on the Kerry side of Adare, at Garraunboy, and heads northeast where it crosses the Limerick to Foynes railway line before heading east across the River Maigue, and meets the Adare to Limerick road at Rineroe.
Construction is expected to begin in early 2007, with a completion date in late 2008.