Near Abergavenny test centre
Rated challenging from its real manoeuvre load, 6 roundabouts and 28 turns across 36 navigation steps.
This is an independent 29.0 km practice loop near Abergavenny test centre, taking roughly 50 min to drive. It is NOT an official DVSA examiner route, the DVSA does not publish those, but it uses the same local roads and junction types an examiner is likely to choose.
On this route you’ll practise multiple roundabouts, dual-carriageway joins, national-speed roads, 20 mph zones, changing speed limits, residential manoeuvres, busy a-roads and independent driving. Driving it a few times before your test builds the muscle memory that frees up attention for observation and decision-making on the day.
The loop is anchored by 20 catalogued landmarks, including stations, shops, churches and schools, so you can navigate it from recognisable features rather than a memorised turn list. Rehearsing it in this way means that on test day the area already feels familiar, and your attention is free for the traffic rather than the map.
Whatever the route, your practical test follows the same national shape: an eyesight check, a couple of vehicle-safety questions, around forty minutes of general driving, one reversing manoeuvre chosen by the examiner, and roughly twenty minutes of independent driving following signs or a sat-nav. Practising on roads like these is how you make each of those elements feel routine rather than new.
Treat this route as practice, not a script. The value is not in repeating one fixed sequence but in getting comfortable with the road types, speed changes and junction patterns of the area around Abergavenny test centre, so that whatever order your examiner chooses on the day, none of it is unfamiliar. Drive it a few times, focus on smooth observation and planning, and it becomes one more stretch of road you already know, which is exactly the kind of preparation that turns nerves into confidence.
If you are practising with a supervising driver rather than an instructor, take it steadily: agree the manoeuvre spots in advance, keep to a comfortable pace, and stop to talk through anything that felt rushed. And remember the basics that apply on every road, mirrors before any change of speed or direction, signals in good time, and a following distance that gives you room to react. Those habits travel with you long after the test is passed.
What you’ll actually do on this loop, counted from its turn-by-turn directions.
This route helps you practise:
Road mix
The full 83-step drive on real, named roads (about 29.0 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive north.
6 m
Turn right onto Station Road.
Station Road242 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Station Road.
Station Road372 m
Turn right onto A40/Monmouth Road.
A40415 m
Turn right onto Holywell Road.
Holywell Road283 m
Turn left onto Lower Monk Street/B4233.
Lower Monk Street196 m
Turn right onto Ross Road.
Ross Road427 m
Turn left onto Alexandra Road.
Alexandra Road253 m
Turn left onto Richmond Road.
Richmond Road151 m
Turn left onto Hereford Road/B4521.
Hereford Road254 m
Turn left onto Priory Road.
Priory Road143 m
Turn left onto Alexandra Road.
Alexandra Road84 m
Turn left onto Oxford Street.
Oxford Street135 m
Turn left onto Hereford Road/B4521.
Hereford Road65 m
Turn left onto Priory Road.
Priory Road143 m
Turn left onto Alexandra Road.
Alexandra Road84 m
Turn left onto Oxford Street.
Oxford Street135 m
Turn right onto Hereford Road/B4521.
Hereford Road22 m
Turn left onto Park Avenue.
Park Avenue268 m
Turn right onto Llwynu Road.
Llwynu Road155 m
Turn right onto Park Crescent.
Park Crescent310 m
Turn right onto Hereford Road/B4521.
Hereford Road138 m
Turn right onto Park Avenue.
Park Avenue743 m
Turn right onto A40/Penyfal Road. Continue on A40.
A40547 m
Turn right onto Chapel Road.
Chapel Road567 m
Turn left onto North Street.
North Street388 m
Turn left onto Orchard Street.
Orchard Street134 m
Turn right onto Chapel Road.
Chapel Road77 m
Turn left onto Stanhope Street.
Stanhope Street186 m
Turn left onto Avenue Road.
Avenue Road130 m
Turn left onto Harold Road.
Harold Road154 m
Turn right onto Chapel Road.
Chapel Road293 m
Turn left onto Western Road.
Western Road457 m
Turn left onto Cresta Road.
Cresta Road164 m
Move left onto Knoll Road.
Knoll Road295 m
Turn right onto Belgrave Road.
Belgrave Road221 m
Turn left onto A40/Brecon Road.
A40229 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto A4143.
28 m
Exit the roundabout onto A4143.
A4143536 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Merthyr Road/B4246.
20 m
Exit the roundabout onto Merthyr Road/B4246.
Merthyr Road412 m
Turn right onto Victoria Street.
Victoria Street67 m
Turn left onto Pant Lane.
Pant Lane75 m
Turn left onto Merthyr Road/B4246.
Merthyr Road529 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A4143.
21 m
Exit the roundabout onto A4143.
A4143285 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Merthyr Road/A4143.
17 m
Exit the roundabout onto Merthyr Road/A4143.
Merthyr Road321 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Merthyr Road/B4246.
29 m
Exit the roundabout onto Merthyr Road/B4246.
Merthyr Road182 m
Turn left onto Gipsy Lane/B4269. Continue on B4269.
B42693.0 km
Turn left to stay on B4269.
B426972 m
Turn left onto A4042.
A40422.1 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A40/Monmouth Road.
57 m
Exit the roundabout onto A40/Monmouth Road. Continue on A40.
A401.4 km
Turn right onto A40/Monk Street.
A404 m
Turn right to stay on A40/Monk Street.
A40823 m
Turn left onto Woodland Road.
Woodland Road99 m
Turn right onto Springfield Road.
Springfield Road61 m
Turn left onto Park Crescent.
Park Crescent782 m
Turn left onto Pen-y-Pound.
Pen-y-Pound159 m
Turn right onto A40/Park Road. Continue on A40.
A40463 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A4143.
5 m
Exit the roundabout onto A4143.
A4143536 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A4143.
41 m
Exit the roundabout onto A4143.
A4143285 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Merthyr Road/A4143.
17 m
Exit the roundabout onto Merthyr Road/A4143.
Merthyr Road321 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Merthyr Road/B4246.
29 m
Exit the roundabout onto Merthyr Road/B4246. Continue on B4246.
B4246465 m
Turn left onto Kiln Road.
Kiln Road178 m
Turn left onto Llanelen Road.
Llanelen Road407 m
Turn right onto B4269.
B42692.5 km
Turn left to stay on B4269.
B426972 m
Turn left onto A4042.
A40422.1 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A40/Monmouth Road.
57 m
Exit the roundabout onto A40/Monmouth Road.
A40931 m
Turn right onto Fosterville Crescent.
Fosterville Crescent134 m
Turn left to stay on Fosterville Crescent.
Fosterville Crescent71 m
Turn left onto Holywell Road.
Holywell Road6 m
Turn left onto A40/Monmouth Road.
A40415 m
Turn left onto Station Road.
Station Road146 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Abergavenny · Route 3 loop. Always drive to the road and conditions you see, not the list — signs, signals and other traffic take priority.
These are the real named features along the loop, straight from our route catalogue. Use them to recognise where you are and to anticipate the hazard each one brings, not to memorise a fixed order.
Expect busier traffic, pick-ups and pedestrians around these.
Watch for 20 mph zones, crossings and children near these.
Useful navigation anchors on the loop.
Easy landmarks to navigate the loop by.
Frequent stop-start traffic and pedestrians, keep your speed down.
Multiple roundabouts
Approach in the correct lane, signal on the exit before yours, and keep checking your mirrors as you leave.
Dual-carriageway join
About 8.3 km of this loop is dual carriageway. Build your speed on the slip road, take an effective rearward observation, and merge without forcing other traffic to brake.
Changing speed limits
Limits change across this route (20, 30, 40, 60 mph). Watch for repeater signs and adjust early, examiners mark you down for carrying the wrong speed into a new limit.
Residential streets
Narrow residential roads mean parked cars, pedestrians and reduced visibility. Cover the brake, keep your speed down and be ready to give way.
Navigate by these 20 catalogued landmarks rather than a memorised turn list, an indicative loop, not an official DVSA route.
Abergavenny
Start near Abergavenny.
Dynamo Tyres
Continue to Dynamo Tyres.
ABC
Continue to ABC.
Premier
Continue to Premier.
Judd Brothers
Continue to Judd Brothers.
Ryman
Continue to Ryman.
Abergavenny Baptist Church
Continue to Abergavenny Baptist Church.
Abergavenny Presbyterian Church
Continue to Abergavenny Presbyterian Church.
Cantref Primary School
Continue to Cantref Primary School.
Nisa express
Continue to Nisa express.
Y Cantreff
Continue to Y Cantreff.
Christadelphian Hall
Continue to Christadelphian Hall.
TCM carpets & Beds
Continue to TCM carpets & Beds.
Bridge Inn
Continue to Bridge Inn.
Plas Derwen
Continue to Plas Derwen.
Gateway Church
Continue to Gateway Church.
St Marys
Continue to St Marys.
Abergavenny Fire Station
Continue to Abergavenny Fire Station.
Melville Centre
Continue to Melville Centre.
Our Lady And St Michael's Catholic Church
Finish back near Our Lady And St Michael's Catholic Church, completing the loop.
4 roundabouts · 20 turns · 1 set of lights
4 roundabouts · 20 turns · 1 set of lights
5 roundabouts · 23 turns · 2 sets of lights
1 roundabout · 23 turns · 3 sets of lights
This route is 29.0 km and takes about 50 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Abergavenny test centre, not an official DVSA route.