A751
A751 | ||||
Location Map ( geo) | ||||
Heading north towards Cairnryan | ||||
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From: | Innermessan (NX086633) | |||
To: | Aird (NX092607) | |||
Distance: | 1.7 miles (2.7 km) | |||
Meets: | A75, A77 | |||
Primary Destinations | ||||
Highway Authorities | ||||
Traditional Counties | ||||
Route outline (key) | ||||
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The A751 is a short, but very important link between the A75 and A77 near Stranraer.
With less than 2 miles of tarmac to its name, the A751 doesn't seem much of a route at first glance, running from the three-house hamlet of Innermessan on the A77 through a smattering of farmhouses and other properties, the last of which, Inchparks School House, lies on a corner with the A75 about halfway between Stranraer and Castle Kennedy. The route itself consists of two shorter and one longer straight, linked by sweeping bends, as it passes across gently undulating farmland with patches of woodland. There is a steeper climb up from the A77 at the north end, with views out across Loch Ryan, but otherwise the gradients are gentle. The point of this route is to get traffic from the A75 – that is, heading to or from Dumfries, Gretna and basically the whole of England - to Cairnryan, the ferry port to Larne and Belfast, without having to negotiate central Stranraer. It has become busier since the ferries moved out of Stranraer harbour itself. Ayrshire traffic can equally use the A751 to get to the Machars peninsula, which has beautiful, if sparsely populated countryside.
The A751 has remained steadfastly unchanged since the number was slapped upon it some time in the mid 1920s, probably 1925. It is a trunk route throughout, although this is not always reflected on maps, nor indeed in the signage along the route which was white in places until quite recently.