It is the second longest primary A-road in Scotland after the A9, which is the other principal route to Inverness from the south of Scotland.
The A82 begins in the St. Georges Cross area of central Glasgow, at junctions with the M8 and the A804 before winding its way through the city's West End. Glasgow's "Boulevard" (known officially as Great Western Road), is also this urban section of the A82, passing a number of the city's finest terraces, including Alexander "Greek" Thomson's Great Western Terrace, and Devonshire Gardens.