The A465 is a major road in south Wales. That part of it westwards from Abergavenny is more commonly known as the Heads of the Valleys Road (also known as the Neath to Abergavenny Trunk Road) because it joins together the northern ends (or 'heads') of the South Wales Valleys. It approximately follows the southern boundary of the Brecon Beacons National Park, and an Ordnance Survey Pathfinder guide describes it as the unofficial border between rural and industrial South Wales. It provides a more direct and toll-free route between Northern England and the Midlands to South West Wales and Ireland.