It overlaps for the length of Earl Grey Street with the A702, which diverges to the west on Fountainbridge.

The northern section of the road is a designated a Red Route on which no stopping of vehicles is permitted in order to maintain traffic flow.

[2] The Melville Drive section is flanked to the north by The Meadows, a large public park established in the 18th century.

At each end of Melville Drive is a pair of stone pillars topped by a lion and a unicorn.

The pair at the eastern end were built in 1881, gifted by the publishing and printing company of Thomas Nelson; the pair at the western end were built around 1886 by Sir James Gowans.