The iron works took advantage of the newly opened Wishaw and Coltness railway, that connected the villages with Coatbridge.

The mansion then became a residential school run by Barnardo's until the late 1970s when it was used briefly as a refugee resettlement centre for Vietnamese boat people.

The housing estate of Branchalwood, built in the 1960s, contains detached and semi-detached bungalows and marks the boundary of East Coltness.

A petrol station, tool hire company, two supermarkets, a bakery and a pharmacy are located on Coltness Road.

This older part of Coltness sits lower in the South Calder valley, following the path of North Dryburgh Road from its junction with Wishaw Main Street for almost 2 miles along a hilly and winding course until it meets Coltness Road near the bridge over South Calder Water valley.

This quieter of the suburb has little in the way of commercial facilities and public transport, but has become a rat run for motorists travelling to the M8 wishing to avoid the town centre.

Coltness was designed as mix of both "back and front door" housing stock and low density flatted accommodation, with much open green space.