Harthill is located on the A8 and M8 corridors between Scotland's two largest cities, Edinburgh and Glasgow, with the village by-passed in 1965 by the first constructed section of the M8 motorway. Scotland's first motorway service station was also built at Harthill in 1978 and is located a few hundred yards north of the village. Originally leased and operated by 'Roadchef' to serve M8 traffic, the service station incorporated a landmark motorway footbridge and a corporate business suite which could be leased for meetings or events – being half-way between Scotland's two major cities.