Designers finalising the next phase of the A465 Heads of the Valleys dualling have produced a revised plan to incorporate a sliproad at the upper end of Gilwern, a local councillor understands.

The move follows a public consultation exercise last autumn where the majority of residents backed the idea of retaining a sliproad on that stretch of the carriageway.

County councillor Simon Howarth (pictured) says the main obstacle now is likely to be the cost - and the final decision will rest with Welsh transport minister Carl Sergeant.

"The sliproad above Gilwern was one of the most important issues to arise from the public consultation.

"In the first public inquiry in 1995/96 the Inspector rebuffed the idea. This time the design team went away saying they would like to include it but weren't sure there was enough room.

"That question has been answered - there IS room. They'll now come back to the public to see if we are happy with the revised plans. Whether the design they've come up with will suit everyone remains to be seen.

"Some people don't want a sliproad, they'd prefer to see less traffic going through the village. But I believe the impact on the community would be severe without it. We're a rural setting and we need to keep local businesses alive. The sliproad will keep us on the map."

Many residents are also worried that, without the sliproad, traffic would greatly increase on Abergavenny Road at the opposite end of Gilwern and that the village bus service could be threatened or stops reduced in number or relocated.

"On balance, the move to include the sliproad in the plans has my full support," said Councillor Howarth.

He added: "I'd like to thank the design team for listening. In the end the decision will rest with the Minister - and I hope he will look at this favourably.

"The main obstacle is likely to be cost, because including a sliproad might mean dropping the dual carriageway slightly.

"But it could prove 'cost-neutral' because if it comes down to cost alone we could end up having an independent public inquiry - and that in itself could cost £1m."

The projected £150m scheme for dualling the Heads of the Valleys road from Gilwern to Brynmawr is scheduled to start in 2014.