Highways England is hoping to announce its preferred route for the A417 Missing Link in the Spring.

Highways England originally identified 30 route options to improve the situation but have now narrowed it down to two.

Both proposals on the table would see a three-lane carriageway going up Crickley Hill and two-lanes coming down.

Option 30 is the more expensive to build of the pair, at £485million compared to option 12’s £465million.

A Highways England spokesperson said: “After we’ve announced the preferred route we’ll hold a second consultation to get people’s views on our more refined proposals before we submit an application for a Development Consent Order.