The planned route for a new Dundalk to Newry road has been published by the Department of the Environment and Local Government. The proposed dual-carriageway would run from Cloghoge on the Newry bypass to Kilcurry on the Dundalk western bypass, following a line close to the existing A1/ N1 road across the Border and utilising the existing road where possible.
The estimated cost is £80 million. Environmental studies, the consultation process and land purchases are expected to take at least two years, with construction lasting a further three.
The Minister for the Environment and Local Government, Mr Noel Dempsey, and his Northern Ireland counterpart, Lord Dubs, said the route they had chosen from several options would have the least environmental impact.
"It is right that environmental considerations should have particular importance in the context of this area of high scenic and natural amenity," they said.
A study completed before the route was chosen, funded by the EU, is available from the Louth County Council offices in Dundalk.