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ii. Distributor roads, at district and local level, forming the secondary town network, to take traffic from or to development roads and having no direct frontage access, although this ideal might not be realised for some time in the case of routes in existing built up areas. iii. Primary roads forming the network of main roads for moving vehicles and connecting with the district distributor roads only at appropriately designed junctions and having no minor access points. iv. Regional roads for inter-urban travel, connecting with the town primary roads at infrequent free-flow junctions. 272. An essential feature of the efficient use of the road hierarchy is that traffic should proceed from one type of road to another in orderly progression according to the stage of its journey. THE PLAN FORM 27 3. The constraints within the area of study, the regional network of communications, and the pattern of existing settlements have determined the plan form as a belt of development about one mile wide and five miles long stretching in an arc from Drybridge in the south to Kilwinning in the north and flanking the eastern edge of the built-up area of Irvine Burgh. The existing industrial area at Drybridge and the settlements at Bankhead, Dreghorn and Kilwinning are all incorporated into the district pattern of the arc of development (See Chapter 2), THE COMMUNICATIONS SPINE 274. The most important feature of the communication system is the spine running along the middle of the corridor of new development. The concept is of a road of expressway characteristics with controlled road junctions at approximately one mile intervals providing the "gear boxes" for vehicles to interchange either down the road hierarchy to the district distributors or up the hierarchy to the free-flowing flank roads. 275. The central reservation of the communications spine is proposed to be of dimensions suitable to carry a separate rapid transit system when this is required either on grounds of independent public transport economics or as a result of a policy decision in respect of restraint on private transport. It is not desirable that a decision should be made now as to the form which this rapid transit might take; this should be done in the knowledge of the technical developments and the economics of the alternatives-at the time. 276. The road junctions on the communications spine are located at the peripheries of the various districts which it serves and the public transport stops are located at the centres of these districts. 277. For some years the spine will be a modest road in a wide reservation. However, it is desirable that the earthworks and planting relevant to 92 Printed image digitised by the University of Southampton Library Digitisation Unit the completed spine should be carried out in the initial stages, so that expansion of the transport system can occur with a minimum of disturbance to the adjacent settlements, 278. The control of pedestrians will require continuous impenetrable physical barriers, generally on one side or the other, and particular arrange- ments will be needed at the public transit stops. These must be associated with a separated crossing for pedestrians, designed on a generous scale and integrated with the community buildings on either side. In its final form this might be an enclosed footbridge or underground arcade incorporating space for commercial and public use. 279. "When the communications spine is complete the level of traffic noise may be expected to exceed 80d. B. A. , measured at the kerb, for more than 10% of the time. The Wilson Committee suggested that the noise level inside habitable rooms should not exceed 50d. B. A. in busy urban areas for more than 10% of the time during the day and 35d. B. A. for the same period during the night. Studies have shown that, at a lateral displacement of 17 0 ft. from an unscreened motorway at ground level^the effective loudness is reduced only by one half. However, the introduction of dense screening such as walls, embankments or cuttings, and vegetation has a marked effect. It will be necessary, therefore, particularly in residential districts, to consider appropriate forms of screening as a part of the comprehensive design for the whole length of the spine. (Source: Traffic Noise, G.L.C. 1966). 280. In selecting a route for the communications spine the objective was to determine a line which suited the organisation of the residential and industrial districts which it would serve while having regard to engineering standards and ground form. 281. The route location was done on a base plan to a scale of 1/2, 500 with contours at 5 ft. intervals and using geometric standards appropriate to a speed of 50 m. p. h. 282. Starting in the south the spine runs along the Dundonald to Drybridge road (B7 30), through Drybridge, to cross the Irvine to Kilmarnock road (A7 1) just west of Bankhead. Then it swings north-west crossing the Irvine to Glasgow road (A7 36) to the north of Girdle Toll and on towards Kilwinning skirting to the north of Deer Park and Ladyha' Park. It crosses the Irvine to Kilwinning road and the River Gar nock in the southern part of Kilwinning at Dirrans Cottage, and then heads westwards along the disused railway line for a short length before crossing the main railway lines at Townhead on the west side of Kilwinning. It then swings north in the direction of Dairy to deal with further expansion. 93 Printed image digitised by the University of Southampton Library Digitisation Unit WEST FLANK ROAD (KILWINNING/IRVINE BYPASS) 283. This is a trunk road diversion project to re-route the A78 coastal road to bypass the existing communities of Kilwinning and Irvine. 284. The bypass of Kilwinning is complete and provides dual two-lane carriageways from a roundabout at Hawkhill on the old A78 between Kilwinning and Stevenston, passing to the south of the Burgh, and rejoining the ATS at Dykehead between Kilwinning and Irvine. 285. The bypass of Irvine is now at the design stage, the line having been established by Order in 1964. It runs from the end of the Kilwinning section at Dykehead, round the north edge of Eglinton Vehicle Depot, and passing between the cemetery and the Burgh housing at Irvine Mains. It then runs south, crossing the Annick Water to the east of Lochwards and crossing the Irvine to Kilmarnock road (ATI) about 300 yards west of Annickbank Cottage. It crosses the River Irvine to the west of South Warrix farm and rejoins the existing AT8 at Newhouse Cottage. 286. The line of this road must be considered very carefully since the proposed new development in the area lies to the east of it and hence the road will create a physical barrier between the old and new settlements and between the new population and areas of open space extending to the sea between Irvine and Kilwinning. 28T. Integration of the new development with Irvine and the open space will require segregated pedestrian crossings of the bypass, road connection to it, and special treatment of the adjacent ground where new development is likely to be close to it. Certainly it will be necessary to design it in relation to its setting in the new town and to the ground form with the subtle differences in level which are so important in the flat landscape. The design must, therefore, be considered comprehensively and in some breadth on either side of the road. 288. The road will be used for longer distance movements by traffic in the area and in due course, especially if further growth takes place, will require to be supplemented by the proposed new regional road on the east flank of the growth corridor. EAST FLANK ROAD 289. Towards the end of the development period within the new town area the capacity of the communications spine, and of the west flank road, may be taken up by traffic generated by, and attracted to, activities in the new town. In this event it will be necessary to construct a regional road on the east flank of the town to accommodate through traffic and to increase the number of access points to the new town. The need for this road will be increased if the growth corridor is extended. 94 Printed image digitised by the University of Southampton Library Digitisation Unit 290. The location of this route has been selected with the objective of keeping it close to the eastern flank of the new development in order to accentuate the definition of the edge of the built-up area and at the same time to provide a physical barrier between it and the agricultural land beyond. 291. From south to north, the suggested route starts from Troon to Kilmarnock Road (A759) at Gatehead, passes to the East of Bankhead and crosses the Irvine to Stewarton road (B789) at Perceton Mains, Proceeding north-west it crosses the Irvine to Glasgow road (A7 36) at Auchenwinsey Plantation and the Lugton Water at Broomhill, swings northwards and crosses the railway in the direction of the Dairy valley to the east of, and parallel to, the communications spine, should this be required due to expansion of the developed area. CROSS CONNECTIONS 292. The west flank road (Irvine/Kilwinning bypass), the communications spine, and the eventual east flank road, run roughly in parallel from south-east to north-west and cross connections between all three are proposed at three locations. 293. the most southerly of these is from the A78 west flank road at Shewalton Moor, passing to the south of Drybridge where it crosses the spine, and then connecting to the east flank regional road to the south-west of Crosshouse.

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