HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The A726 road in Scotland is a major route with several distinct sections with different characteristics and names; owing to its stages of construction, since 2005 it has two separate parts, the first running between
Strathaven Strathaven ( ; from ) is a historic market town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland and is the largest settlement in Avondale. It is south of Hamilton. The Powmillon Burn runs through the town centre, and joins the Avon Water to the east of the to ...
in
South Lanarkshire South Lanarkshire (; ) is one of 32 unitary authorities of Scotland. It borders the south-east of the Glasgow City council area and contains some of Greater Glasgow's suburban towns, as well as many rural towns and villages. It also shares bor ...
and Junction 5 of the M77 motorway south of
Newton Mearns Newton Mearns ( ) is a suburban town and the largest settlement in East Renfrewshire, Scotland. It lies southwest of Glasgow City Centre on the A77 road, main road to Ayrshire, above sea level. It has a population of approximately 26,993, stre ...
in
East Renfrewshire East Renfrewshire (; ) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It was formed in 1996, as a successor to the Eastwood (district), Eastwood district of the Strathclyde region. The northeastern part of the council area is close to Glasgow and ma ...
via
East Kilbride East Kilbride (; ), sometimes referred to as EK, is the largest town in South Lanarkshire in Scotland, and the country's sixth-largest locality by population. Historically a small village, it was designated Scotland's first "new town" on 6 Ma ...
, and the other running between Junction 3 of the M77 and the M898 motorway near the
Erskine Bridge The Erskine Bridge is a multi span cable-stayed box girder bridge spanning the River Clyde in west central Scotland. The bridge connects West Dunbartonshire with Renfrewshire and can be used by all types of motor vehicles, cyclists and pedestrian ...
, via Paisley and Junction 29 of the M8 motorway near Glasgow International Airport.A726 Strathaven to Erskine Bridge
Glasgow Motorway Archive, January 2021


Route


Strathaven and East Kilbride

The A726's first section begins in the small market town of
Strathaven Strathaven ( ; from ) is a historic market town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland and is the largest settlement in Avondale. It is south of Hamilton. The Powmillon Burn runs through the town centre, and joins the Avon Water to the east of the to ...
in
South Lanarkshire South Lanarkshire (; ) is one of 32 unitary authorities of Scotland. It borders the south-east of the Glasgow City council area and contains some of Greater Glasgow's suburban towns, as well as many rural towns and villages. It also shares bor ...
as Glasgow Road, taking over from the A723, a short section of which connects to the primary route into the town, the A71, itself about west of Junction 8 of the
M74 motorway The A74(M) and M74 form a major motorway in Scotland, connecting it to England. The routes connect the M8 motorway (Scotland), M8 motorway in central Glasgow to the Scottish-English Anglo-Scottish border, border at Gretna, Scotland, Gretna. T ...
via Stonehouse. While the A723 heads north-east towards
Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...
, the A726 goes north-west through open farmland, passing the small village of Chapelton towards the large town of
East Kilbride East Kilbride (; ), sometimes referred to as EK, is the largest town in South Lanarkshire in Scotland, and the country's sixth-largest locality by population. Historically a small village, it was designated Scotland's first "new town" on 6 Ma ...
– in 2014 the entire road was quoted as being one of the most dangerous in the world owing to the number of accidents on it, and many of these incidents would originate from this single carriageway section which has a wide variety of traffic types, several tight bends and an open, elevated setting which is liable to be affected by poor weather conditions. On entering East Kilbride, the road becomes Strathaven Road, and remains single-carriageway up to the Torrance Roundabout at Crutherland near Calderglen Country Park. It stayed as such for a further north until a £23 million project was undertaken in 2019 to convert this to dual carriageway, along with the unclassified Greenhills Road leading from the Torrance Roundabout's other exit, which had become increasingly busy and important as a route for residents living in the south of the town with the expansion of Lindsayfield in addition to the older Whitehills and Greenhills neighbourhoods. The project had fallen behind schedule by late 2021 and this section of the road was closed for an intended two-week period to expedite matters, but then re-opened early amid complaints from residents living on local rural roads that had seen a huge increase in traffic as a result of the closure. The direction then becomes north-westerly, with a graded exit for the Kelvin Industrial Estate, the St Leonards neighbourhood and South Lanarkshire College, followed by a roundabout at Birniehill, meeting the southern end of the A725 which runs through the north of the town, to Junction 5 of the M74 via
Blantyre, South Lanarkshire Blantyre ( or ; ) is a town and Civil parishes in Scotland, civil parish in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, with a population of 16,900. It is bounded by the River Clyde to the north, the Rotten Calder to the west, the Park Burn to the east (denoti ...
and eventually to Junction 7A of the M8 motorway via
Bellshill Bellshill (pronounced "Bells hill") is a town in North Lanarkshire in Scotland, southeast of Glasgow city centre and west of Edinburgh. Other nearby localities are Motherwell to the south, Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Hamilton to the south ...
. The A726 at this point becomes the 'Queensway', the main east–west road through the planned town of the 1950s. It continues westwards, soon meeting a roundabout identical to the last in design (featuring underpasses for pedestrians and cyclists at each corner and a sunken landscaped area at its centre), with exits for the eastern ends of East Kilbride's town centre (mainly consisting of a series of connected indoor shopping precincts) and Murray residential neighbourhood, then a third roundabout for the western ends of these districts, plus eastern parts of Westwood, West Mains. A straight and interrupted stretch of nearly follows, before a pair of roundabouts offer exits for Hairmyres Hospital and western parts of Westwood (B764), and for College Milton Industrial Estate and western parts of West Mains (B761). This leads on to another stretch featuring only one minor junction in either direction which do not allow cross-carriageway movement, until reaching the Philipshill Roundabout at Peel Park. Here the A726 designation switches to the southbound exit of the roundabout, named as Redwood Road and the start of the Glasgow Southern Orbital Route, completed in 2005. The road from East Kilbride continues westwards towards Busby via an overpass, but was renamed as the A727 from the time of the Southern Orbital being completed.


Glasgow Southern Orbital

The Southern Orbital, a high-specification dual carriageway across open countryside for its entire length (but not listed officially as a
trunk road A trunk road is a major highway with a specific legal classification in some jurisdictions, notably the United Kingdom, Sweden and formerly Ireland. Trunk roads are planned and managed at the national-level, distinguishing them from non-trunk ro ...
, unlike the Queensway), has its first grade-separated exit for the B764 (Hairmyres) within a few hundred yards of its start. The direction gradually changes from southbound to westbound by the time of reaching the Belle Craig Roundabout with the B767, serving the villages of Waterfoot to the north and
Eaglesham Eaglesham ( or , or ; ; ) is a village in East Renfrewshire, Scotland, situated about south of Glasgow, southeast of Newton Mearns and south of Clarkston, East Renfrewshire, Clarkston, and southwest of East Kilbride. The 2011 census reveal ...
to the south. The other road into Eaglesham, the B764 running directly through its historic centre, was previously the main route between this part of
Lanarkshire Lanarkshire, also called the County of Lanark (; ), is a Counties of Scotland, historic county, Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area and registration county in the Central Lowlands and Southern Uplands of Scotland. The county is no l ...
and
Ayrshire Ayrshire (, ) is a Counties of Scotland, historic county and registration county, in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. The lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area of Ayrshire and Arran covers the entirety ...
, running onwards over Ballageich Hill to join the A77 on a junction where several accidents occurred. Bypassing this was one of the main reasons for the Southern Orbital's construction, the other being to provide direct access between East Kilbride and the M77 motorway without having traffic on local roads within
Newton Mearns Newton Mearns ( ) is a suburban town and the largest settlement in East Renfrewshire, Scotland. It lies southwest of Glasgow City Centre on the A77 road, main road to Ayrshire, above sea level. It has a population of approximately 26,993, stre ...
or the existing suburban route via Clarkston and
Giffnock Giffnock (; ; , ) is a town and the administrative centre of East Renfrewshire in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies east of Barrhead, east-southeast of Paisley and northwest of East Kilbride, at the southwest of the Greater G ...
(i.e. the road renamed to A727). further on from the Eaglesham roundabout, the Southern Orbital has an exit at Mearns Road for Newton Mearns itself, then an eastbound only entry/exit for the Maidenhill neighbourhood (under construction as of April 2022), before the road meets the M77 at Junction 5 (rebuilt for its completion), also offering access into Newton Mearns via the A77 which crosses over the motorway at the previous location of junction 5 at Maidenhill / Malletsheugh. Together with the A725, this part of the A726 forms an important bypass for the
Greater Glasgow Greater Glasgow is an urban settlement in Scotland consisting of all localities which are physically attached to the city of Glasgow, forming with it a single contiguous urban area (or conurbation). It does not relate to municipal government ...
region, connecting the three major motorways and several of the larger towns to the south-east of the city without having to travel through the city centre network.


Nitshill, Paisley and Renfrewshire

The second section of the A726 begins further north from where the first ends, as a continuation of the A727 at Junction 3 of the M77 (completed along with this section of the motorway in 1996). It runs westwards as Nitshill Road – the only part of the entire route within the
Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
city boundaries – passing the
Jenny Lind Johanna Maria Lind (Madame Goldschmidt) (6 October 18202 November 1887) was a Swedish opera singer, often called the "Swedish Nightingale". One of the most highly regarded singers of the 19th century, she performed in soprano roles in opera in ...
, Deaconsbank, Arden,
Darnley Darnley is an area in south-west Glasgow, Scotland, on the A727 just west of Arden (the areas are separated by the M77 motorway although a footbridge connects them). Other nearby neighbourhoods are Priesthill to the north, Southpark Village ...
, Southpark Village, Parkhouse, South Nitshill,
Nitshill Nitshill () is a district on the south side of Glasgow. It is bordered by South Nitshill to the south, Darnley to the east, Crookston and Roughmussel to the north-west, Hurlet to the west and Househillwood and Priesthill to the north, with ...
, and Craigbank neighbourhoods, an entrance to the Dams to Darnley Country Park and Nitshill railway station, passing under the
Glasgow South Western Line The Glasgow South Western Line is a mainline railway almost entirely in Scotland (the only exception being the final section into Carlisle in North West England) that runs from Glasgow to Kilmarnock, and then either via Dumfries, or Stranraer ...
tracks via an arched bridge just before the station. It leaves the suburban environment after the staggered junction with the A736 at the Hurlet straddling the Glasgow-East Renfrewshire-
Renfrewshire Renfrewshire () (; ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. Renfrewshire is located in the west central Lowlands. It borders East Renfrewshire, Glasgow, Inverclyde, North Ayrshire and West Dunbartonshire, and lies on the southern ba ...
border, before continuing onto the south-eastern edge of Paisley at a roundabout with the B771 at Dykebar. Running north-west as Barrhead Road, it has stretches of single and dual carriageway as it passes Hunterhill and Blackhall, meeting the split dual carriageway A761 (Gordon Street). This road continues eastwards as the A726 onto Mill Street to skirt around the centre of the town, crossing over the
White Cart Water The River Cart is a tributary of the River Clyde, Scotland, which it joins from the west roughly midway between the towns of Erskine, Renfrewshire, Erskine and Renfrew and opposite the town of Clydebank. The River Cart itself is very short, bein ...
on the Hammills Bridge (the northbound road also continues as the unclassified Bridge Street and crosses the river via Abbey Bridge). It too turns north at Paisley Police Office / Lagoon Leisure Centre, meeting Gauze Street from the west which continues on to become Glasgow Road, restarting the A761 (this continues into central Glasgow as Paisley Road West). At
St Mirin's Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Saint Mirin in Paisley, dedicated to Saint Mirin the patron saint of Paisley, Renfrewshire, Paisley, is the mother church of the Catholic Diocese of Paisley and is the seat of the Bishop of Paisley. History The former par ...
, the A726 turns west as Incle Street, then splits before passing under the
Ayrshire Coast Line The Ayrshire Coast Line is one of the lines within the Strathclyde suburban Railway, rail network in Scotland. It has 26 stations and connects the Ayrshire coast to Glasgow. There are three branches, to , and , all running into the high leve ...
/
Inverclyde Line The Inverclyde Line is a railway line running from Glasgow Central station through Paisley (Gilmour Street) and a series of stations to the south of the River Clyde and the Firth of Clyde, terminating at Gourock and Wemyss Bay, where it conn ...
railway tracks near
Paisley Gilmour Street railway station Paisley Gilmour Street railway station is the largest of the four stations serving the town of Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland (the others being Paisley St James railway station, Paisley St. James, Paisley Canal railway station, Paisley Canal an ...
, merging again at St James Street beside
Paisley Sheriff Court Paisley Sheriff Court is a municipal structure in St James Street, Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland. The complex, which was the headquarters of Renfrewshire County Council and is currently used as a courthouse, is a Category A listed building. ...
. The intervening westbound lanes directly pass the station as Weir Street and Old Sneddon Street, while the eastbound lanes (as described in that direction of travel from the court) are initially unnamed before crossing the White Cart again, then become Niddry Street where they meet the start of the A741 which heads north to
Renfrew Renfrew (; ; ) is a town west of Glasgow in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It is the historic county town of Renfrewshire. Called the "Cradle of the Royal Stewarts" for its early link with Scotland's former royal house, Renfrew gaine ...
– left lanes become its northbound carriageway, while right lanes feed the southbound Renfrew Road, designated as the A726 for a short distance until passing under the railway. While St James Street continues west as the B775 (Underwood Road), the A726 turns sharply north as Caledonia Street then north-west as Greenock Road, becoming dual carriageway just prior to the St James Playing Fields, which it skirts around before passing under the elevated lanes of the start/end of the A737 (towards
Linwood Linwood may refer to: Places Many of the place names for Linwood come from the presence of linden trees. Australia * Linwood, South Australia *Linnwood, Guildford, 11-35 Byron Road, Guildford, New South Wales Canada * Linwood, Ontario * Linwood, ...
,
Johnstone Johnstone (,
) is a town in the
North Ayrshire North Ayrshire (, ) is one of 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas in Scotland. The council area borders Inverclyde to the north, Renfrewshire and East Renfrewshire to the northeast, and East Ayrshire and South Ayrshire to the east and s ...
. It then reaches the St James Interchange, Junction 29 of the M8 motorway, also offering access to the A737 and to Glasgow International Airport. It continues on the north side of the interchange as Barnsford Road which runs around the western perimeter of the airport, then passes some fields and crosses the
Black Cart Water The River Cart is a tributary of the River Clyde, Scotland, which it joins from the west roughly midway between the towns of Erskine and Renfrew and opposite the town of Clydebank. The River Cart itself is very short, being formed from the conf ...
and the isolated Inchinnan Business Park, meeting the A8 (Greenock Road) at Red Smiddy Roundabout. The A8 heads west while the A726 continues north to Erskine, running as a 'spine road' through the centre of the town with no properties directly on it (provisions were made to upgrade it to dual carriageway if required, but the town did not expand as originally envisaged); a roundabout serves the central shopping centre and Park Mains High School. To the north of Erskine the road turns westwards, finally terminating at the twin feeder roundabouts (known as the 'Spectacles')Overview of M898 Motorway
Gazetteer for Scotland The ''Gazetteer for Scotland'' is a gazetteer covering the geography, history and people of Scotland. It was conceived in 1995 by Bruce Gittings of the University of Edinburgh and David Munro of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society, and co ...
for the only junction of the short M898 motorway, connecting either to the
Erskine Bridge The Erskine Bridge is a multi span cable-stayed box girder bridge spanning the River Clyde in west central Scotland. The bridge connects West Dunbartonshire with Renfrewshire and can be used by all types of motor vehicles, cyclists and pedestrian ...
across the
River Clyde The River Clyde (, ) is a river that flows into the Firth of Clyde, in the west of Scotland. It is the eighth-longest river in the United Kingdom, and the second longest in Scotland after the River Tay. It runs through the city of Glasgow. Th ...
to
West Dunbartonshire West Dunbartonshire (; , ) is one of the 32 Local government in Scotland, local government council areas of Scotland. The area lies to the north-west of the Glasgow City council area and contains many of Glasgow's commuter towns and villages. ...
and the A82, or onto the M8 at Junction 30. The road continues as the B815 into Bishopton where it meets the A8.


References


External links

*
A726
SABRE A sabre or saber ( ) is a type of backsword with a curved blade associated with the light cavalry of the Early Modern warfare, early modern and Napoleonic period, Napoleonic periods. Originally associated with Central European cavalry such a ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:7-0726 Roads in Scotland Transport in South Lanarkshire Transport in East Renfrewshire Transport in Renfrewshire Transport in Glasgow Paisley, Renfrewshire East Kilbride Newton Mearns Strathaven Erskine, Renfrewshire