The roadworks on the A465 Heads of the Valleys Road, which aim to make the road into a dual carriageway, are a familiar topic to anyone living near them. Whether it's a young boy being injured on a roundabout set up due to the works, or Cefn Coed being left completely isolated after the road making it a popular pit-stop was closed, the works have had a huge impact.
But at the other end of the current leg of the roadworks, a 5.6-mile drive from Cefn Coed, is another village where the works have affected the fortunes of businesses and impacted the lives of residents. Ask anyone in Hirwaun what they think of the works, and you'll get a mixed response - often along the lines of 'it needs doing, but it's a pain,' - yet for some business owners, the picture gets a bit trickier.
Before the roadworks, someone commuting from Aberdare to Swansea might stop off in Hirwaun to pick up some shopping or a takeaway on their journey home - and visitors from towns and villages all around could pop in for some shopping. Since the roadworks started, many business owners say trade has hit a speedbump.
