A78 road
Encyclopedia
The A78 is an A road in Scotland
. It connects Greenock
and Prestwick
on a route which follows the northern section of the Ayrshire
coast.
, Inverclyde
as a continuation of the A8 road at the Bull Ring roundabout, and runs in a southerly direction through Wemyss Bay
, Largs
, Seamill
and then bypasses the major towns of Ardrossan
, Irvine
and Troon
amongst others before terminating near Prestwick, South Ayrshire, where it forms a junction with the A77
.
The rest is dual carriageway
- between the Eglington and Warrix interchanges there are in fact 3 lanes in each direction, and the road is constructed to motorway standard (with full grade separation
at junctions) save for a lack of hard shoulders. The road very rarely appears busy on this stretch - the adjacent New Town
development area of Irvine, North Ayrshire
(which includes Kilwinning
, Dreghorn
and Girdle Toll
) had a population of just over 50,000 in the 2001 census; the town planners designed the infrastructure for a population more in the region of 120,000.
, Saltcoats
and Stevenston
. The result was a highly congested section with numerous traffic lights making progress slow. To counter this a bypass was constructed with two additional entrance/exit points other than the ends in the form of roundabouts.
The section at the Ardrossan end is a single carriageway road with a climbing lane
. The other two sections are dual carriageway with two lanes in each direction.
The existence of the bypass meant that the section through the towns previously labelled A78 became a continuation of the A738 which previously formed a concurrency
with the A78 through Stevenston before diverging to form Boglemart Street and subsequently many other streets in Saltcoats and Ardrossan. Many sources available today still don't acknowledge these changes, for example "Google Maps".
The new road can easily take 10 minutes off any journey which would otherwise involve travelling through the three towns and as a result has proven very popular amongst people who make such journeys - for example people from Largs and West Kilbride
to the north who now have swifter access to the shopping facilities of Irvine and Ayr and the Morrisons
supermarket at Stevenston
, as well as any football fans who may be travelling to watch Kilmarnock FC.
and Skelmorlie
. For this reason, closure gates are located at both the north end of Largs and the south end of Skelmorlie.
When the road is closed traffic between Largs and Greenock
is often diverted along narrow country lanes with little room to pass any oncoming traffic. This has been known to cause widespread delays.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. It connects Greenock
Greenock
Greenock is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in United Kingdom, and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland...
and Prestwick
Prestwick
Prestwick is a town in South Ayrshire on the south-west coast of Scotland, about south-west of Glasgow. It adjoins the larger town of Ayr, the centre of which is about south...
on a route which follows the northern section of the Ayrshire
Ayrshire
Ayrshire is a registration county, and former administrative county in south-west Scotland, United Kingdom, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine. The town of Troon on the coast has hosted the British Open Golf Championship twice in the...
coast.
Route
The A78 begins in GreenockGreenock
Greenock is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in United Kingdom, and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland...
, Inverclyde
Inverclyde
Inverclyde is one of 32 council areas used for local government in Scotland. Together with the Renfrewshire and East Renfrewshire council areas, Inverclyde forms part of the historic county of Renfrewshire - which current exists as a registration county and lieutenancy area - located in the west...
as a continuation of the A8 road at the Bull Ring roundabout, and runs in a southerly direction through Wemyss Bay
Wemyss Bay
Wemyss Bay is a village on the coast of the Firth of Clyde falling within the Inverclyde council area and historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. The name may derive from the Gaelic uaimh, meaning 'cave'...
, Largs
Largs
Largs is a town on the Firth of Clyde in North Ayrshire, Scotland, about from Glasgow. The original name means "the slopes" in Scottish Gaelic....
, Seamill
Seamill
Seamill is a village in North Ayrshire on the west coast of Scotland, about 5 miles north of Ardrossan and 8 miles south of Largs.It is sometimes considered part of West Kilbride, and sometimes considered as a village in its own right...
and then bypasses the major towns of Ardrossan
Ardrossan
Ardrossan is a town on the North Ayrshire coast in south-western Scotland. The name "Ardrossan" describes its physical position — 'ard' from the Gaelic àird meaning headland, 'ros' a promontory and the diminutive suffix '-an' - headland of the little promontory...
, Irvine
Irvine, North Ayrshire
Irvine is a new town on the coast of the Firth of Clyde in North Ayrshire, Scotland. According to 2007 population estimates, the town is home to 39,527 inhabitants, making it the biggest settlement in North Ayrshire....
and Troon
Troon
Troon is a town in South Ayrshire. It is situated on the west coast of Scotland, about eight miles north of Ayr and three miles northwest of Glasgow Prestwick International Airport. Lying across the Firth of Clyde, the Isle of Arran can be seen. Troon is also a port with freight and ferry services...
amongst others before terminating near Prestwick, South Ayrshire, where it forms a junction with the A77
A77 road
The A77 road is a major road in Scotland. It runs in a southwesternly direction from the city of Glasgow, past the towns of Giffnock, Newton Mearns, Kilmarnock, Prestwick, Ayr, Maybole, Girvan and Stranraer to the town of Portpatrick on the Irish Sea...
.
Infrastructure
Much of the road is single carriageway - both for a short distance through Greenock and a 21 mile stretch between Inverkip and Ardrossan.The rest is dual carriageway
Dual carriageway
A dual carriageway is a class of highway with two carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation...
- between the Eglington and Warrix interchanges there are in fact 3 lanes in each direction, and the road is constructed to motorway standard (with full grade separation
Grade separation
Grade separation is the method of aligning a junction of two or more transport axes at different heights so that they will not disrupt the traffic flow on other transit routes when they cross each other. The composition of such transport axes does not have to be uniform; it can consist of a...
at junctions) save for a lack of hard shoulders. The road very rarely appears busy on this stretch - the adjacent New Town
New towns in the United Kingdom
Below is a list of some of the new towns in the United Kingdom created under the various New Town Acts of the 20th century. Some earlier towns were developed as Garden Cities or overspill estates early in the twentieth century. The New Towns proper were planned to disperse population following the...
development area of Irvine, North Ayrshire
Irvine, North Ayrshire
Irvine is a new town on the coast of the Firth of Clyde in North Ayrshire, Scotland. According to 2007 population estimates, the town is home to 39,527 inhabitants, making it the biggest settlement in North Ayrshire....
(which includes Kilwinning
Kilwinning
Kilwinning is a historic town in North Ayrshire, Scotland. It is known as The Crossroads of Ayrshire. The 2001 Census recorded it as having a population of 15,908.-History:...
, Dreghorn
Dreghorn
Dreghorn is a village near Irvine, North Ayrshire, Scotland. This parish comprehends the old parishes of Dreghorn and Pearston, which were united in 1668. The whole of the parish was historically the property of the De Morvilles, who were Constables of Scotland and Lords of Cunninghame...
and Girdle Toll
Girdle Toll
Girdle Toll is a small village on the outskirts of Irvine, North Ayrshire.-Geography:It is situated off the Stanecastle Roundabout just next to the Stanecastle Keep. The village is from Prestwick Airport and only from the city of Glasgow....
) had a population of just over 50,000 in the 2001 census; the town planners designed the infrastructure for a population more in the region of 120,000.
Recent improvements
Until December 2004, the route of the A78 went through the "three towns" - namely ArdrossanArdrossan
Ardrossan is a town on the North Ayrshire coast in south-western Scotland. The name "Ardrossan" describes its physical position — 'ard' from the Gaelic àird meaning headland, 'ros' a promontory and the diminutive suffix '-an' - headland of the little promontory...
, Saltcoats
Saltcoats
- References :*McSherry, R. & M. . Old Saltcoats, Stenlake Publishing, Ochiltree. ISBN 1-872074-57-X.*Stansfield, G. . Ayrshire & Renfrewshire's Lost Railways, Stenlake Publishing, Catrine. ISBN 1-84033-077-5.-External links:***...
and Stevenston
Stevenston
Stevenston is a town in North Ayrshire, Scotland. It is one of the 'Three Towns' along with Ardrossan and Saltcoats.-History:The town is named after Stephan Loccard or Lockhart, whose father obtained a grant of land from Richard de Morville, Lord Cunninghame and Constable of Scotland, around 1170....
. The result was a highly congested section with numerous traffic lights making progress slow. To counter this a bypass was constructed with two additional entrance/exit points other than the ends in the form of roundabouts.
The section at the Ardrossan end is a single carriageway road with a climbing lane
Climbing lane
Climbing lanes are a roadway lane design typically used on Interstate highways. They allow slower travel for large vehicles, such as large trucks or Semi-trailer trucks, up a steep grade...
. The other two sections are dual carriageway with two lanes in each direction.
The existence of the bypass meant that the section through the towns previously labelled A78 became a continuation of the A738 which previously formed a concurrency
Concurrency (road)
A concurrency, overlap, or coincidence in a road network is an instance of one physical road bearing two or more different highway, motorway, or other route numbers...
with the A78 through Stevenston before diverging to form Boglemart Street and subsequently many other streets in Saltcoats and Ardrossan. Many sources available today still don't acknowledge these changes, for example "Google Maps".
The new road can easily take 10 minutes off any journey which would otherwise involve travelling through the three towns and as a result has proven very popular amongst people who make such journeys - for example people from Largs and West Kilbride
West Kilbride
West Kilbride is a village in North Ayrshire, on the west coast of Scotland by the Firth of Clyde, looking across the water to Goat Fell and the Isle of Arran...
to the north who now have swifter access to the shopping facilities of Irvine and Ayr and the Morrisons
Morrisons
Wm Morrison Supermarkets plc is the fourth largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, headquartered in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. The company is usually referred to and is branded as Morrisons formerly Morrison's, and it is part of the FTSE 100 Index of companies...
supermarket at Stevenston
Stevenston
Stevenston is a town in North Ayrshire, Scotland. It is one of the 'Three Towns' along with Ardrossan and Saltcoats.-History:The town is named after Stephan Loccard or Lockhart, whose father obtained a grant of land from Richard de Morville, Lord Cunninghame and Constable of Scotland, around 1170....
, as well as any football fans who may be travelling to watch Kilmarnock FC.
Flooding
Flooding is common during periods of high winds combined with a high tide on the coastal stretch between LargsLargs
Largs is a town on the Firth of Clyde in North Ayrshire, Scotland, about from Glasgow. The original name means "the slopes" in Scottish Gaelic....
and Skelmorlie
Skelmorlie
Skelmorlie is a village in North Ayrshire, Scotland.Although it is the northernmost settlement in the council area of North Ayrshire it is contiguous with Wemyss Bay, which is in Inverclyde. The dividing line is the Kelly Burn, which flows into the Firth of Clyde just south of the Rothesay ferry...
. For this reason, closure gates are located at both the north end of Largs and the south end of Skelmorlie.
When the road is closed traffic between Largs and Greenock
Greenock
Greenock is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in United Kingdom, and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland...
is often diverted along narrow country lanes with little room to pass any oncoming traffic. This has been known to cause widespread delays.