Formerly a trunk route from the east to the west coast of Scotland it has since been downgraded to a mix of primary and secondary routes. From Edinburgh to Darvel, it is now a secondary route, in a poor state of repair in some places. But, from Darvel to Irvine, it has retained its primary route status.
Route
Edinburgh to Newmains
The A71 almost parallels the M8 between the A720 (Edinburgh City Bypass) and the junction with the A73 at Newmains. It passes through the village of Wilkieston and onto the Mid Calder bypass, which leads the route to the south of Livingston. The A71 follows a very straight course through Livingston with several grade separated junctions.
West of Livingston, the A71 turns sharply south west, bypassing Shotts, Newmains and Wishaw then descends steeply into the Clyde Valley, over Garrion Bridge at the junction with the A72. The A71 climbs steeply up the western side of the Clyde valley on a road which it shares for a very short section with the A72.
When the A71 peaks at the top of the valley, it goes under the M74 at Jct 8 (a junction known locally as Canderside Toll), before turning towards the village of Stonehouse, where a bypass takes traffic to the north of the narrow village roads, before descending into the Avon valley and into Strathaven. This village, at a meeting of the A71, A723 and A726, provides a link to East Kilbride and Paisley, as well as to Lanark, Hamilton and Motherwell.
Darvel to Irvine
The A71 then becomes a narrow and winding road across moorland, as the road ascends to the head of the Avon valley. At the highest point is Loudoun Hill, an ancient site of human occupation, and the road here follows the route of a minor Roman road which once linked the Clyde Valley and the coast. The road descends into the Irvine Valley, going through the towns of Darvel and Newmilns, and bypassing Galston and then through Hurlford. At Darvel, the A71 becomes a primary route for the rest of its length to Irvine, and widens slightly, with a straighter alignment until its junction with the A77, south of Kilmarnock. The A71 remains as a dual-carriageway until its terminus in Irvine town centre. A crash barrier runs along the central reservation of the dual-carriageway from the A77 to the boundary with North Ayrshire at Dreghorn.
In mid 2014, the road began to subside between Darvel and Newmilns, with the westbound lane being affected near to the entrance to Gowanbank House. Traffic lights were put in place while a solution was sought, however as of January 2017, a solution has been found and the traffic lights have been lifted.
East Ayrshire is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland. It shares borders with Dumfries and Galloway, East Renfrewshire, North Ayrshire, South Ayrshire and South Lanarkshire. The headquarters of the council are located on London Road, Kilmarnock. With South Ayrshire and the mainland areas of North Ayrshire, it formed the former county of Ayrshire.
Avon Water, also known locally as the River Avon, is a 24-mile-long (39 km) river in Scotland, and a tributary of the River Clyde.
Newmilns is a village in the burgh of Newmilns and Greenholm, in East Ayrshire, Scotland. It has a population of 3,057 people and lies on the A71, around seven miles east of Kilmarnock and twenty-five miles southwest of Glasgow. It is situated in a valley through which the River Irvine runs and, with the neighbouring towns of Darvel and Galston, forms an area known as the Upper Irvine Valley.
Galston is a municipality in East Ayrshire, Scotland, which has a population of 5,001 (2001) and is at the heart of the civil parish of the same name. It is situated in wooded countryside four miles upriver from Kilmarnock and is one a group of the small towns located in the Irvine Valley between the towns of Hurlford and Newmilns. To the north of the town is the ruin of Loudoun Castle, the site of Loudoun Castle theme park from 1995 to 2010. In 1874 the population was 4,727.
Darvel (Scots: Dairvel, Scottish Gaelic: Darbhail) is a small town in East Ayrshire, Scotland. It is at the eastern end of the Irvine Valley and is sometimes referred to as "The Lang Toon".
Kilmarnock and Loudoun is a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP), using the first-past-the-post voting system.
Loudoun Hill is a volcanic plug in East Ayrshire, Scotland. It is located near the head of the River Irvine, east of Darvel.
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 in South Lanarkshire and Junction 5 of the M77 motorway south of Newton Mearns in East Renfrewshire via East Kilbride, and the other running between Junction 3 of the M77 and the M898 motorway near the Erskine Bridge, via Paisley and Junction 29 of the M8 motorway near Glasgow International Airport.
The River Irvine is a river that flows through southwest Scotland. Its watershed is on the Lanarkshire border of Ayrshire at an altitude of 810 feet (250 m) above sea-level, near Loudoun Hill, Drumclog, and 7 miles SW by W of Strathaven. It flows 29+1⁄2 mi (47.5 km) westward, dividing the old district of Cunninghame from that of Kyle, until it reaches the sea via Irvine Harbour in the form of the Firth of Clyde, and flows into Irvine Bay by the town of Irvine. It has many tributaries, some of which form parish, district and other boundaries.
The Darvel Branch was an extension of the former Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock and Ayr Railway in Scotland built by the Glasgow and South Western Railway to allow trains to travel between Kilmarnock and Darvel.
Newmains is a village and former mining community on the eastern edge of Wishaw, North Lanarkshire, Scotland, 18 miles (29 km) south-east of Glasgow. Although it is considered by the local authority to have a town centre in its own right.
Garrion Bridge is a small hamlet spanning the border between North Lanarkshire and South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is located on the banks of the Clyde Valley, 18 miles (29 km) south-east of Glasgow. The hamlet is most commonly associated with the nearby town of Wishaw.
Priestland is a village in East Ayrshire, Scotland. It has a population of 121 and lies on the A71, around two miles west of Loudoun Hill, ten miles east of Kilmarnock and twenty miles south of Glasgow. It is situated in a valley through which the River Irvine runs and alongside the burghs of Galston, Newmilns and Darvel, forms an area known as the Upper Irvine Valley.
Overtown is a village in North Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is located to the east of the River Clyde, about 1 mile (1.6 km) south of Wishaw. Originally developed as a mining village in the 19th century, its population declined after the closure of the coal mines and the associated railways in the 1950s.
Strathaven Central or Strathaven was a railway station on the Darvel and Strathaven Railway serving the town of Strathaven in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. The station opened as an extension of the line from Stonehouse and in 1904 was connected with the Hamilton and Strathaven Railway via a link to Strathaven North. It was renamed as 'Strathaven' a few months before closure.
The Glasgow and South Western Railway operated a number of cross-country lines in Ayrshire.
This article traces the Caledonian Railway branches in South Lanarkshire.
The 2021–22 SFA South Region Challenge Cup was the 15th edition of the annual knockout cup competition for senior non-league clubs in the central and southern regions of Scotland. The tournament entry increased from 142 to a record 161 teams thanks to additional clubs joining the East of Scotland Football League and West of Scotland Football League.
Irvine Valley is one of the nine electoral wards of East Ayrshire Council. Created in 2007, the ward elects three councillors using the single transferable vote electoral system. Originally a four-member ward, Irvine Valley was reduced in size following a boundary review and has elected three councillors since the 2017 East Ayrshire Council election.
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