West Lothian

This article is about the County.
For the Highway Authority, see West Lothian Council.

West Lothian, which is also known as Linlithgowshire after the county town, is a traditional county in the central belt of Scotland. It is the smallest of the 3 Lothian counties, although boundary changes for the modern West Lothian Council have seen its size increase dramatically, with a large part of western Midlothian annexed. A small area around Queensferry is covered by Edinburgh Council and a small area around Bo'Ness is covered by Falkirk Council.

Geography & Economy

The B7015 in the rural south

This small county is heavily urbanised, with Bathgate, Queensferry, Bo'ness, Linlithgow and parts of the new town of Livingston all within its borders, as well as a number of smaller towns and villages. In between, the land is relatively flat and predominantly farmland, although there are areas of former coal mining and a lot of industry. The presence of the M8 running across the south of the county has led to the towns alongside almost coalescing into a ribbon development of housing and commercial and industrial estates.

The north of the county, despite being on the M9 corridor, is comparatively undeveloped. The 3 main towns all have an element of tourism, with the old royal palace at Linlithgow, the steam railway at Bo'Ness and Queensferry with its views of the Bridges amongst the attractions. A coastal trail along the Forth links many of these sites together. With the county sitting between nearby Edinburgh and Glasgow, it is prime commuter belt, but as noted above there is a lot of employment within the county as well.

Roads

The M9 near Linlithgow

West Lothian has good road networks along the two motorway corridors, but the hillier interior of the county is less well served, with just a few minor roads. Perhaps unsurprisingly, most routes seem to lead to Edinburgh, although the important Glasgow to Edinburgh corridor carries by far the most traffic in the county, perhaps in the whole of Scotland.

The countys most striking landmarks are the 3 bridges across the Forth, which include the Forth Road Bridge and the new Queensferry Crossing, connecting Fife to the Capital City. Most non-trunk roads within the traditional county are maintained by West Lothian Council, with Edinburgh Council and Falkirk Council also covering small areas. The only Trunk routes are the motorways, which are managed by Transport Scotland.

Route	From	To	Length
M8	Edinburgh, Midlothian	Bishopton, Renfrewshire	61 miles	View
M9	Edinburgh	Dunblane	32 miles	View
M90	Kirkilston	Perth	28.7 miles	View
A8	Edinburgh	Greenock	68.8 miles	View
A89	Glasgow	Newbridge	35.5 miles	View
A90	Edinburgh	Fraserburgh	146 miles	View
A705	Livingston	Whitburn	7.4 miles	View
A706	Borrowstounness	Lanark	28.5 miles	View
A767	Uphall	Mid Calder	2.8 miles	View
A779	Bathgate	Livingston	2.2 miles	View
A800	Bathgate	Couston Crossroads	2.0 miles	View
A801	East Whitburn	Polmont	8.9 miles	View
A803	Glasgow	Champany	33.3 miles	View
A899	Burnside	Dedridge	6.5 miles	View
A904	Queensferry	Falkirk	17.6 miles	View
A993	Muirhouses	Kinneil	2.6 miles	View
A7002	Bathgate	East Whitburn	0.9 miles	View
A7066	Boghead Roundabout	Boghall Roundabout	2.6 miles	View
A8000	Almondhill	Queensferry	1.7 miles	View
A9000	Echline	Ferrytoll	2.6 miles	View
B707	Mid Calder	Philpstoun	7.2 miles	View
B708	Armadale	Bathgate	1.9 miles	View
B708	Bathgate	Livingston	2.0 miles	View
B718	Harthill	Blackridge	1.8 miles	View
B792	West Calder	Wester Woodside	7.7 miles	View
B800	Newbridge	Queensferry	3.3 miles	View
B902	Queensferry	Bo'ness	10.7 miles	View
B903	Champany	Blackness	1.7 miles	View
B904	Polmont	Grangemouth Refinery	1.8 miles	View
B907	Ferrymuir Road	High Sreet	0.5 miles	View
B924	Dalmeny	Queensferry (W)	3.2 miles	View
B7002	Bathgate	Whiteside	1.8 miles	View
B7010	Stane	Longridge	5.6 miles	View
B7015	Wilkieston	Fauldhouse	14.9 miles	View
B7066	Carfin	Whitburn	12.5 miles	View
B7067	Heartlands	Whitburn	0.9 miles	View
B7069	Heartlands	Whitburn	0.9 miles	View
B8020	Broxburn	Woodend	4.0 miles	View
B8028	Falkirk	Couston	8.7 miles	View
B8029	Baldeston	Linlithgow	1.3 miles	View
B8046	Mid Calder	Old Philpstoun	8.8 miles	View
B8047	Westfield	Torphichen	2.4 miles	View
B8084	Blamuir	Whitburn	3.7 miles	View
B9035	Queensferry	Easter Dalmeny	2.5 miles	View
B9080	Linlithgow	Kirkliston	7.8 miles	View
B9109	The Binns	Blackness	0.9 miles	View
B9110	Muirhouses	Kinneil	2.5 miles	View
T1	London	Scrabster		View
T27	Edinburgh	Glasgow		View

Key

Motorway

Primary Route

Non Primary Route

Former Motorway

Defunct Route

E Road

Future Motorway

Future Primary

Future Non Primary

Historical Route

Tourist Route

Roman Road

Unbuilt Motorway

Unbuilt Primary

Unbuilt Non Primary

National Cycle Network

Cycle Route

Eurovelo Cycle Route

Junctions

Main Article: Junctions in West Lothian

Bridges, Tunnels, and other Crossings

Main Article: Crossings in West Lothian