Crossword Genius

Coastal road (some might say) is capital (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

beirut

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'capital' is the definition.
(Beirut is an example)

'coastal road some might say is' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'road' could be 'rut' (rut is a kind of road) and 'rut' is found within the answer.
'is' could be 'be' and 'be' is found in the answer.
A single letter 'i' remains which might be clued in a way I don't see.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for beirut that I've seen before include "Middle East capital" , "Lebanon's capital" , "Capital city of Lebanon" , "Lebanese capital" , "Capital of 21 across" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.