Court sources told Arab News on Wednesday that the case is due to be heard in March.

The sources added that the court has sent an official subpoena to the ministry’s legal team.

The claimants in north Jeddah asked the court to appoint an independent committee consisting of judges and real estate experts to re-evaluate their properties, claiming that the special committee appointed by the ministry offered to pay them far less than current market prices.

Faisal Al-Malki, a lawyer representing real estate owners, said the ministry did not respond to their complaint about the compensation offer. “This is why we decided to go to court,” he said.

He added that the compensation money decided by the committee was not commensurate with the current market prices. “The committee did not take into account the large areas of buildings and did not consider the unique features of some buildings over others,” he said.

Muhammad Al-Dahlawi, chairman of the ministry's compensation committee, said the appropriation of land would continue and would not be stopped by the objection of some landowners in the absence of a court order. He, however, did not deny the right of owners to take legal action.

Al-Dahlawi said no time has been fixed yet for owners to evacuate their buildings, but he added that compensation for 10 buildings that obstruct the completion of work at the Haj Terminal Bridge would be finalized immediately. He said the fate of other buildings could wait until a settlement was reached with their owners.

Al-Dahlawi claimed that the committee decided to offer SR700 per square meter of land, but real estate brokers exploiting the situation were demanding SR2,000 per square meter instead.

The Transport Ministry began demolishing the Haj Terminal Bridge in early Ramadan and expects to complete the new road and railway overpass there in three months.

Meanwhile, a legal expert said the acquisition of land for the railway project might continue despite objections from property owners as it was in the public interest.

“Buildings are usually confiscated for the benefit of the public. This does not affect the court proceedings over the lawsuit,” said Omar Al-Khouli, a professor of law at King Abdul Aziz University in Jeddah.

He said the dispute between the landowners and the Ministry of Transport was based on the evaluation of prices and not ownership.