A5 road contractors 'instructed to vacate land' vested for upgrade
It follows a High Court ruling that the £1.2bn project does not comply with Stormont's 2022 Climate Change Act.
UTV has seen a letter sent to those affected.
The letter said: "The effect of the judgement is that, as of 27th June 2025, the ownership of vested lands has now reverted to you and all other affected landowners.
"Therefore, the Department has instructed its contractors to vacate the land."
Work had already started along the the first phase of the new route from Ballygawley to Strabane.
The Infrastructure Minister defended the decision to carry on with clearing the land ahead of the court decision.
On 23rd June, a High Court Judge ruled the plan to build the A5 Western Transport Corridor could not go ahead in its current form because it does not comply with climate change targets.
Earlier this week, Liz Kimmins said she would be "pursuing" an appeal to the ruling which will require Executive approval.
The letter said the Department will now seek to agree "reasonable costs" for reinstatement of the vested lands and compensation for the use and occupation of the land from the 25th November 2024.
A meeting will be held with agents and the Ulster Farmers Union on Friday.
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She also said that if the ban came into effect the harm would be 'far-reaching', could cause 'irreparable harm to large numbers of members of the public', including causing some to 'self-censor'. Ms Ni Ghralaigh later named Normal People author Sally Rooney, who lives abroad and 'fears the ramifications for her, for her work, for her books, for her programmes' if she shows support for Palestine Action. 'Is the Prime Minister going to denounce her, an Irish artist, as a supporter of a proscribed organisation?' 'Will that have ramifications for her with the BBC, etc?' Ms Ni Ghralaigh asked. Ben Watson KC, for the Home Office, told the High Court there was an 'insuperable hurdle' in the bid to temporarily block the ban of Palestine Action. The barrister also said that if a temporary block was granted, it would be a 'serious disfigurement of the statutory regime'. 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