Near Barking Quay test centre
Rated easy from its real manoeuvre load, 2 roundabouts, 10 turns and 2 signalled junctions across 15 navigation steps.
This is an independent 35.6 km practice route near Barking Quay test centre, taking roughly 20 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, 20 mph zones, changing speed limits, residential manoeuvres, busy a-roads and sustained concentration. 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 pubs, churches, stations and shops, 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 Barking Quay 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 106-step drive on real, named roads (about 36.1 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive southeast on Fanshawe Avenue/A123.
Fanshawe Avenue124 m
Keep left to stay on Fanshawe Avenue/A123.
Fanshawe Avenue288 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Longbridge Road/A124.
4 m
Exit the roundabout onto Longbridge Road/A124.
Longbridge Road20 m
Turn left to stay on Longbridge Road/A124.
Longbridge Road134 m
Turn left onto Park Avenue.
Park Avenue482 m
Turn left onto Faircross Avenue.
Faircross Avenue404 m
Keep left to stay on Faircross Avenue.
Faircross Avenue25 m
Turn left onto Longbridge Road/A124.
Longbridge Road2.0 km
Make a right U-turn to stay on Longbridge Road/A124.
Longbridge Road1.8 km
Turn left onto Wilmington Gardens.
Wilmington Gardens556 m
Turn right onto Salisbury Avenue.
Salisbury Avenue142 m
Keep right to stay on Salisbury Avenue.
Salisbury Avenue111 m
Keep right to stay on Salisbury Avenue.
Salisbury Avenue29 m
Turn right onto Cecil Avenue.
Cecil Avenue402 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Fanshawe Avenue/A123.
111 m
Exit the roundabout onto Fanshawe Avenue/A123. Continue on A123.
A123749 m
Keep right to take Ilford Lane/A123.
Ilford Lane341 m
Keep right to stay on Ilford Lane/A123.
Ilford Lane557 m
Turn left onto Cecil Road.
Cecil Road184 m
Turn left onto Lowbrook Road.
Lowbrook Road23 m
Keep left to stay on Lowbrook Road.
Lowbrook Road40 m
Turn left onto Hamilton Road.
Hamilton Road184 m
Turn right onto Ilford Lane/A123.
Ilford Lane490 m
Keep right to stay on A123.
A123807 m
Keep left to stay on Fanshawe Avenue/A123.
Fanshawe Avenue288 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Cecil Avenue.
32 m
Exit the roundabout onto Cecil Avenue.
Cecil Avenue124 m
Keep right to stay on Cecil Avenue.
Cecil Avenue161 m
Turn right onto Rosslyn Road.
Rosslyn Road151 m
Turn left onto Salisbury Avenue.
Salisbury Avenue194 m
Turn left onto Cecil Avenue.
Cecil Avenue117 m
Turn right onto Rosslyn Road.
Rosslyn Road428 m
Turn right onto Hulse Avenue.
Hulse Avenue59 m
Turn left onto Levett Road.
Levett Road262 m
Keep left to stay on Levett Road.
Levett Road118 m
Turn right onto Upney Lane.
Upney Lane1.1 km
Turn right to take the A123 ramp.
A1231.8 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Broadway.
104 m
Exit the roundabout onto Broadway.
Broadway390 m
Turn right onto London Road.
London Road211 m
Move left onto Linton Road.
Linton Road146 m
Turn right onto Cambridge Road.
Cambridge Road217 m
Turn left onto Station Parade.
Station Parade43 m
Turn right.
80 m
Make a right U-turn.
80 m
Turn left onto Station Parade.
Station Parade43 m
Turn right onto Cambridge Road.
Cambridge Road403 m
Turn left onto North Street.
North Street445 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto St Paul's Road/A123.
43 m
Exit the roundabout onto St Paul's Road/A123.
St Paul's Road259 m
Move right onto Axe Street/A123.
Axe Street35 m
Turn right to stay on A123.
A123603 m
Keep right to take Ripple Road/A123.
Ripple Road1.5 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A13/Ripple Road.
85 m
Exit the roundabout onto A13/Ripple Road.
A131.2 km
Turn left onto Gale Street.
Gale Street928 m
Keep right to stay on Gale Street.
Gale Street161 m
Make a left U-turn at Rugby Road to stay on Gale Street.
Gale Street90 m
Turn right.
32 m
Turn right.
75 m
Turn right onto Rugby Road.
Rugby Road62 m
Turn right onto Gale Street.
Gale Street298 m
Turn right onto Woodward Road.
Woodward Road1.1 km
Turn left onto Lodge Avenue/A1153.
Lodge Avenue552 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Ripple Road/A123.
10 m
Exit the roundabout onto Ripple Road/A123.
Ripple Road37 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A13/Alfred's Way.
56 m
Exit the roundabout onto A13/Alfred's Way.
A132.4 km
Keep straight to stay on A13.
A13928 m
Take the Beckton Alps exit.
A1348 m
Take the Beckton Alps ramp.
A13307 m
Keep left to take Woolwich Manor Way/A117.
Woolwich Manor Way504 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Woolwich Manor Way/A117.
36 m
Exit the roundabout onto Woolwich Manor Way/A117.
Woolwich Manor Way351 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto East Ham Manor Way.
79 m
Exit the roundabout onto East Ham Manor Way.
East Ham Manor Way32 m
Turn right onto Savage Gardens.
Savage Gardens301 m
Turn right onto Porter Road.
Porter Road74 m
Turn left.
86 m
Turn left onto Trusedale Road.
Trusedale Road76 m
Turn left onto Savage Gardens.
Savage Gardens126 m
Keep straight to stay on Savage Gardens.
Savage Gardens216 m
Keep left to stay on Savage Gardens.
Savage Gardens39 m
Turn left onto East Ham Manor Way.
East Ham Manor Way32 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Woolwich Manor Way/A117.
19 m
Exit the roundabout onto Woolwich Manor Way/A117.
Woolwich Manor Way351 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Woolwich Manor Way/A117.
48 m
Exit the roundabout onto Woolwich Manor Way/A117.
Woolwich Manor Way514 m
Turn right to take the ramp.
A13495 m
Keep left to stay on A13/Newham Way.
A13261 m
Take the Beckton Roundabout exit.
A13103 m
Keep right to take A13.
A13110 m
Keep left to take A406/North Circular Road.
A4061.0 km
Take the A124/A124 exit towards Barking/East Ham.
A406379 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit.
162 m
Exit the roundabout onto London Road/A124.
London Road210 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Barking Northern Relief Road/A124.
10 m
Exit the roundabout onto Barking Northern Relief Road/A124.
Barking Northern Relief Road25 m
Keep right to stay on Barking Northern Relief Road/A124.
Barking Northern Relief Road211 m
Keep right to stay on Barking Northern Relief Road/A124.
Barking Northern Relief Road319 m
Keep left to stay on Barking Northern Relief Road/A124.
Barking Northern Relief Road407 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Longbridge Road/A124.
60 m
Exit the roundabout onto Longbridge Road/A124.
Longbridge Road20 m
Turn left to stay on Longbridge Road/A124.
Longbridge Road1.5 km
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Barking Quay · Route 6 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.
Useful navigation anchors on the loop.
Pedestrian crossings and parked cars are common nearby.
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 6.2 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, 50 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.
Royal Oak
Start near Royal Oak.
Durga Mandir
Continue to Durga Mandir.
Sacraments Church
Continue to Sacraments Church.
Ilford Lane Seventh-Day Adventist Church
Continue to Ilford Lane Seventh-Day Adventist Church.
St Erkenwald, Barking
Continue to St Erkenwald, Barking.
Bestway International Christian Centre
Continue to Bestway International Christian Centre.
Salvation Army Church
Continue to Salvation Army Church.
Barking Baptist Church (Biserica Baptista Genesis)
Continue to Barking Baptist Church (Biserica Baptista Genesis).
Catholic Church of St Mary & St Ethelburga, Barking
Continue to Catholic Church of St Mary & St Ethelburga, Barking.
Barking Celestial Church of Christ
Continue to Barking Celestial Church of Christ.
Be Church
Continue to Be Church.
Becontree
Continue to Becontree.
Renwick Road
Continue to Renwick Road.
St Anne's Catholic Church
Continue to St Anne's Catholic Church.
Bestway
Continue to Bestway.
Beckton Platform 1
Continue to Beckton Platform 1.
Woolwich Manor Way
Continue to Woolwich Manor Way.
Beckton Bus Station
Continue to Beckton Bus Station.
Brewers Fayre
Continue to Brewers Fayre.
Quaker Burial Ground
Finish back near Quaker Burial Ground, completing the loop.
5 roundabouts · 16 turns
6 roundabouts · 17 turns · 5 sets of lights
2 roundabouts · 15 turns · 1 set of lights
2 roundabouts · 10 turns · 1 set of lights
This route is 35.6 km and takes about 20 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Barking Quay test centre, not an official DVSA route.