South end: Dumfries Length 114.3 km | North end: Edinburgh | |
Primary
destinations: A780 road
A75 road
- A74(M)
A708 road
A72 road
A721 road
A703 road
A6094 road
A766 road
A720 road
A772 road
A700 road
A7 road | ||
The A701 is a major road in Scotland that runs from Dumfries to Edinburgh.
Contents
Map of A701, Penicuik EH26, UK
Route
The A701 leaves Dumfries and travels north to meet the A74(M) east of Beattock. It then passes beneath the A74(M) before continuing to the north-east towards Moffat and ultimately Edinburgh.
The road can be an alternative to the A7 or A702 routes to Edinburgh from the A74(M) and M6. It is signposted as a scenic route to Edinburgh from the motorway. The A701 is popular with motorcyclists and passes close to the edge of the Devil's Beef Tub. It runs also parallel with the former Talla Railway for several miles.
A stretch of the A701, between Penicuik and Edinburgh has a proposed bypass to run alongside it. This has been contested for many years, as the bypass will form a bottle neck back into the current road, and also will cut through an important wildlife corridor, a woodland which is a SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest). There has been a protest site there, campaigning to stop this development since June 2002.