This was fiercely opposed by environmentalists, who set up a road protest camp,[1] as it meant that the motorway would cut through the historic Pollok Country Park.

A threatening visit in 1995 to the protesters of 'Pollok Free State' by the Conservative Member of Parliament Allan Stewart (then the MP for Eastwood, the constituency including Newton Mearns, which the new road would bypass), accompanied by his airgun-wielding son, resulted in a political shot in the foot, contributing to his subsequent resignation, and a fine for his son in Paisley Sheriff Court.

This replaced the dangerous 4-lane single carriageway of the A77 that dropped to a two lane single carriageway for the bend just north of the very sharp Mearns Road turn-off, and the A77/B764 (Eaglesham) junction (causing vehicles to queue dangerously on the outside lane on a bend to enter the B764 from the south) which were prone to fatal accidents.

The scheme also included the Glasgow Southern Orbital (GSO) which bypasses the B764 Eaglesham Moor Road to East Kilbride.

The original segment of the A77 between Newton Mearns and Fenwick that previously carried the traffic now accommodated by the M77 has been converted into a two-lane single carriageway with cycle lanes.