In the first years of the nineteenth century, the 12th Earl of Eglinton developed Ardrossan Harbour, intending it as a sea port for the City of Glasgow.

Work proceeded from the Glasgow end, but the canal only reached Johnstone, all of the available money having been expended and debts of £71,209 incurred.

4. c. lxxxvii) was obtained on 14 June 1827, the estimate for the work being £94,093; the debt of the canal enterprise was not assumed by the new railway company.

Once again subscriptions fell short of the desired value: they amounted to only £28,950, but work started, from the Ardrossan end, and once again the money was entirely expended, this time with debts of £20,000, after only part of the scheme was built.

Previously to November 1838, the passenger's fare was set at the rate of one penny per mile; but was raised in consequence of the Government duty to 8d.

From Ardrossan, the proposed line goes east through Saltcoats then to the south of Stevenston before turning north between Dubbs and Todhills to pass to the west of Kilwinning,[5] where the railway terminated.

The Doura mineral railway branch to collieries ran east from a junction north of Dubbs (Dubbs Junction) to a bridge across the River Garnock (at Dirrans), then turned northeast to serve a broad arc of collieries to the north of the grounds of Eglinton Castle.

One spectator described a crowded paddle steamer from Liverpool which landed at Ardrossan pier: "Disembarking, we seized upon a sort of carriage which plied upon a coal train and carried a large assortment of passengers, all drawn by one horse, and set out for the little town of Irvine.

[6] In 1840 the line was regauged to standard gauge and connected with the Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock and Ayr Railway at Kilwinning station.