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 gd, Strath Aibhne ) 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 ...

South Lanarkshire gd, Siorrachd Lannraig a Deas , image_skyline = , image_flag = , image_shield = Arms_slanarkshire.jpg , image_blank_emblem = Slanarks.jpg , blank_emblem_type = Council logo , image_map ...

and Junction 5 of the

M77 motorway The M77 motorway is a motorway in Scotland. It begins in Glasgow at the M8 motorway at Kinning Park, and terminates near Kilmarnock at Fenwick, becoming the A77 dual carriageway. Changes were made in 2005 segregating a lane on the M8 motor ...

south of

Newton Mearns Newton Mearns ( sco, The Mearns; gd, Baile Ùr na Maoirne ) is a suburban town and the largest settlement in East Renfrewshire, Scotland. It lies southwest of Glasgow City Centre on the main road to Ayrshire, above sea level. It has a populat ...

East Renfrewshire East Renfrewshire ( sco, Aest Renfrewshire; gd, Siorrachd Rinn Friù an Ear) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. Until 1975, it formed part of the county of Renfrewshire for local government purposes along with the modern council areas of ...

via

East Kilbride East Kilbride (; gd, Cille Bhrìghde an Ear ) is the largest town in South Lanarkshire in Scotland and the country's sixth-largest locality by population. It was also designated Scotland's first new town on 6 May 1947. The area lies on a rais ...

, and the other running between Junction 3 of the M77 and the

M898 motorway The M898 motorway is a motorway in Renfrewshire, Scotland. It is a spur route from the M8 motorway towards the Erskine Bridge. It is the highest numbered permanent motorway in the United Kingdom, and one of the shortest. It lacks hard shoulder ...

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 gd, Port-adhair Eadar-nàiseanta Ghlaschu , image = Glasgow Airport logo.svg , image-width = 200 , image2 = GlasgowAirportFromAir.jpg , image2-width = 250 , IATA = GLA , ICAO = EGPF , type = Public , owner = AGS Airports , hub = *easy ...

.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

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 in central Glasgow to the Scottish-English border at Gretna. In conjunction with their southward continuation, the M6 motorwa ...

via Stonehouse. While the A723 heads north-east towards

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

, the A726 goes north-west through open farmland, passing the small village of Chapelton towards the large town of

– 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 Crutherland is a new area of East Kilbride, backing onto Torrance House Golf Course (part of Calderglen Country Park Calderglen Country Park is a country park in the town of East Kilbride, South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is situated along the ...

near

Calderglen Country Park Calderglen Country Park is a country park in the town of East Kilbride, South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is situated along the eastern edge of the town and is its principal greenspace and recreation area. Description The park opened officially ...

. 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 Lindsayfield is a residential area in the new town of East Kilbride, Scotland. The modern estate was constructed from the 1990s onwards. Overview Lindsayfield is situated next to the districts of Greenhills and Whitehills. The main road aroun ...

in addition to the older

Whitehills Whitehills is a small fishing village in Banffshire, Scotland, that lies west of Banff on the Moray Firth. It forms part of the Aberdeenshire council area. It surrounds a rocky bay to the west of Knock Head. It has grown as a fishing village ...

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 St Leonards may refer to: Places Australia *St Leonards, New South Wales **St Leonards railway station *St Leonards, Tasmania, suburb of Launceston *St Leonards, Victoria Canada *St. Leonard's, Newfoundland and Labrador New Zealand * St L ...

neighbourhood and

South Lanarkshire College South Lanarkshire College is a further education institution in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. Its campus is located in East Kilbride, with new buildings completed in 2008 at a site between the town centre and the Kelvin industrial area. The colle ...

, followed by a roundabout at

Birniehill Birniehill is an area of the Scottish new town East Kilbride, in South Lanarkshire. It lies southeast of the Town Centre, south of St Leonards and northeast of The Murray. The northbound exist of Birniehill roundabout (which in common with fou ...

, 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 ; gd, Baile an t-Saoir) is a town and 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 (denoting the bo ...

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 Murray may refer to: Businesses * Murray (bicycle company), an American manufacturer of low-cost bicycles * Murrays, an Australian bus company * Murray International Trust, a Scottish investment trust * D. & W. Murray Limited, an Australian who ...

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 University Hospital Hairmyres is a district general hospital in the Hairmyres neighbourhood of East Kilbride, South Lanarkshire, Scotland. The hospital serves one of the largest elderly populations in Scotland. It is managed by NHS Lanarkshire. ...

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 A dual carriageway ( BE) or divided highway ( AE) is a class of highway with carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation (BrE) or median (AmE). Roads with two or more carriageways which are ...

across open countryside for its entire length (but not listed officially as a trunk road, 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 ( ) is a village in East Renfrewshire, Scotland, situated about south of Glasgow, southeast of Newton Mearns and south of Clarkston, and southwest of East Kilbride. The 2011 census revealed that the village had 3,114 occupants, do ...

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 ( gd, Siorrachd Lannraig; sco, Lanrikshire), is a historic county, lieutenancy area and registration county in the central Lowlands of Scotland. Lanarkshire is the most populous county in Scotlan ...

and

Ayrshire Ayrshire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Àir, ) is a historic county and registration county in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine and it borders the counties of Re ...

, running onward over Ballageich Hill to join the A77 on an accident-prone junction was one of the main reason for the Southern Orbital's construction, the other being to provide direct access between East Kilbride and the

without having traffic on local roads within

or the existing suburban route via Clarkston and

Giffnock Giffnock (; sco, Giffnock; gd, Giofnag, ) 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 south ...

(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 ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

city boundaries – passing the Jenny Lind,

Deaconsbank Deaconsbank is a neighbourhood in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated south of the River Clyde. The main feature of the area, which falls into the ''Greater Pollok'' ward of Glasgow City Council and directly borders the East Renfrewshir ...

Arden Arden may refer to: Places ;Australia *Arden, an area in North Melbourne, Victoria near the Arden Street Oval ;Canada * Arden, Ontario ;Denmark * Arden, Denmark, a town **Arden Municipality, a former municipality, including the town of 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 t ...

Southpark Village Southpark Village is a housing estate in the Darnley area of the Scottish city of Glasgow. The northwestern area was built during the mid to late 1980s, but the southeastern part was built in the late 2010s. It is located on the south-western ...

, Parkhouse,

South Nitshill South Nitshill ( gd, Cnoc nan Cnòthan a Deas) is a neighbourhood in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated south of the River Clyde, in the south-west of the conurbation and within the Greater Pollok ward of the local authority area. A ...

Nitshill Nitshill ( gd, Cnoc nan Cnòthan) 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 ...

, and Craigbank neighbourhoods, an entrance to the

Dams to Darnley Country Park Dams to Darnley Country Park is a 1350 acre country park in East Renfrewshire and Glasgow, in Scotland comprising the historic greenspace between the towns of Barrhead and Newton Mearns in East Renfrewshire, and the areas of Darnley, Parkhouse an ...

and

Nitshill railway station Nitshill railway station is situated in Nitshill, a district of Glasgow, Scotland. The station is managed by ScotRail and is on the Glasgow South Western Line, southwest of . History The station was opened by the Glasgow, Barrhead and Neils ...

, passing under the

Glasgow South Western Line The Glasgow South Western Line is a mainline railway in Scotland that runs from Glasgow to Kilmarnock, and then either via Dumfries, or Stranraer via Ayr, with a branch to East Kilbride. History The line was built by several railway compan ...

tracks via an arched bridge just before the station. It leaves the suburban environment after the staggered junction with the A736 at the

Hurlet Hurlet (or The Hurlet) is a small semi-rural district and former mining village,Hurlet
at

Renfrewshire Renfrewshire () ( sco, Renfrewshire; gd, Siorrachd Rinn Friù) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. Located in the west central Lowlands, it is one of three council areas contained within the boundaries of the historic county of Renfr ...

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 ( sco, River Cairt) 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 f ...

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, is the mother church of the Catholic Diocese of Paisley and is the seat of the Bishop of Paisley. History The former parish church of St Mirin ...

, 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 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 level at . ...

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 connect ...

railway tracks near

Paisley Gilmour Street railway station , symbol_location = gb , symbol = rail , image = 2012 at Paisley Gilmour Street station - main entrance.jpg , caption = Paisley Gilmour Street from County Square , borough = Paisley, R ...

, 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 (; sco, Renfrew; gd, Rinn Friù) 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 ...

– 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 ( sco, Johnstoun,
gd, Baile Iain) is a town ...

and

North Ayrshire North Ayrshire ( gd, Siorrachd Àir a Tuath, ) is one of 32 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 so ...

. It then reaches the St James Interchange, Junction 29 of the M8 motorway, also offering access to the A737 and to

. 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 ( sco, River Cairt) 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 f ...

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 Erskine (, sco, Erskin, gd, Arasgain) is a town in the council area of Renfrewshire, and historic county of the same name, situated in the West Central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies on the southern bank of the River Clyde, providing the lo ...

, 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 cont ...

for the only junction of the short

, connecting either to the

across the

River Clyde The River Clyde ( gd, Abhainn Chluaidh, , sco, Clyde Watter, or ) is a river that flows into the Firth of Clyde in Scotland. It is the ninth-longest river in the United Kingdom, and the third-longest in Scotland. It runs through the major cit ...

West Dunbartonshire West Dunbartonshire ( sco, Wast Dunbairtonshire; gd, Siorrachd Dhùn Breatann an Iar, ) is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland. The area lies to the west of the City of Glasgow and contains many of Glasgow's commuter town ...

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 ( French: �sabʁ or saber in American English) is a type of backsword with a curved blade associated with the light cavalry of the early modern and Napoleonic periods. Originally associated with Central European cavalry such as th ...

{{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