Near Bishop's Stortford test centre
Rated moderate from its real manoeuvre load, 7 roundabouts, 15 turns and 1 signalled junction across 25 navigation steps.
This is an independent 24.8 km practice loop near Bishop's Stortford test centre, taking roughly 35 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.
Along the way you'll meet Dunmow Road. Knowing the approach, lane and exit at each one before you arrive is the difference between a planned manoeuvre and a last-second reaction, and last-second reactions are where avoidable faults come from.
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 shops, parks, churches and pubs, 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 Bishop's Stortford 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 76-step drive on real, named roads (about 24.9 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive west.
13 m
Turn right onto South Road/B1529.
South Road120 m
Turn left onto Rhodes Avenue.
Rhodes Avenue177 m
Turn right onto Shangani Road.
Shangani Road83 m
Turn left onto Mazoe Road.
Mazoe Road259 m
Turn left onto Thorley Hill.
Thorley Hill177 m
Turn right onto Thornbera Road.
Thornbera Road322 m
Turn left onto Thorley Park Road.
Thorley Park Road380 m
Keep straight to stay on Thorley Park Road.
Thorley Park Road67 m
Turn left onto Thorley Hill.
Thorley Hill251 m
Turn left onto Lower Park Crescent.
Lower Park Crescent417 m
Turn right onto Chinnery Hill.
Chinnery Hill145 m
Turn right onto Lower Park Crescent.
Lower Park Crescent337 m
Turn left onto Chinnery Hill.
Chinnery Hill69 m
Turn left onto Norfolk Way.
Norfolk Way835 m
Turn right onto Benhooks Avenue.
Benhooks Avenue145 m
Keep right to stay on Benhooks Avenue.
Benhooks Avenue129 m
Keep right to stay on Benhooks Avenue.
Benhooks Avenue97 m
Turn left onto Cemetery Road.
Cemetery Road330 m
Turn left onto Apton Road.
Apton Road479 m
Turn left.
21 m
Turn left onto Scott Road.
Scott Road510 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Apton Road.
15 m
Exit the roundabout onto Apton Road.
Apton Road307 m
Turn right to stay on Apton Road.
Apton Road74 m
Turn right.
17 m
Make a right U-turn.
17 m
Turn left onto Apton Road.
Apton Road74 m
Turn right to stay on Apton Road.
Apton Road275 m
Turn left onto Potter Street/B1529. Continue on B1529.
B1529354 m
Turn right onto Hadham Road/A1250.
Hadham Road99 m
Turn left onto Northgate End/B1004. Continue on B1004.
B1004832 m
Turn left to stay on Rye Street.
Rye Street95 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Rye Street.
Rye Street95 m
Turn right onto Rye Street/B1004. Continue on B1004.
B1004833 m
Turn left onto Link Road/A1250.
Link Road364 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A1250.
2 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1250.
A1250193 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A1250.
5 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1250.
A12508 m
Keep right to stay on A1250.
A1250198 m
Turn left onto Stansted Road/B1383.
Stansted Road367 m
Turn right onto Foxley Drive.
Foxley Drive9 m
Turn left onto Stansted Road.
Stansted Road225 m
Make a left U-turn at Foxley Drive onto Stansted Road/B1383.
Stansted Road615 m
Turn right onto Hockerill Street/A1250. Continue on A1250.
A1250207 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A1250.
10 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1250.
A1250197 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Link Road/A1250.
19 m
Exit the roundabout onto Link Road/A1250. Continue on A1250.
A1250390 m
Keep right to take Hadham Road/A1250.
Hadham Road942 m
Turn left onto Maple Avenue.
Maple Avenue351 m
Turn left onto Maze Green Road.
Maze Green Road113 m
Keep left to stay on Maze Green Road.
Maze Green Road416 m
Turn right onto Hadham Road/A1250. Continue on A1250.
A1250958 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A1250.
2 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1250.
A1250193 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A1250.
5 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1250.
A12501.4 km
Keep left to take Dunmow Road/A1250.
Dunmow Road348 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Dunmow Road/A1250.
22 m
Exit the roundabout onto Dunmow Road/A1250.
Dunmow Road760 m
Move right onto A120/Bishop's Stortford Bypass.
A120266 m
Enter Birchanger Green Roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto A120.
Birchanger Green Roundabout175 m
Exit the roundabout onto A120.
A12069 m
Move left onto Dunmow Road/B1256.
Dunmow Road180 m
Turn right onto Bedlars Green Road.
Bedlars Green Road68 m
Keep right to stay on Bedlars Green Road.
Bedlars Green Road1.5 km
Turn right onto Church Road.
Church Road752 m
Keep left to stay on Church Road.
Church Road2.3 km
Turn right onto Latchmore Bank/A1060. Continue on A1060.
A10602.1 km
Turn left onto London Road/B1383.
London Road220 m
Keep right to stay on London Road/B1383.
London Road353 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto South Road/B1529.
23 m
Exit the roundabout onto South Road/B1529.
South Road192 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Bishop's Stortford · Route 1 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.
Decide your lane and exit on the approach to each of these, get set up early.
Watch for 20 mph zones, crossings and children near 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 0.5 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, 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.
Rhodes Laundrette
Start near Rhodes Laundrette.
Wilson Close Park
Continue to Wilson Close Park.
Lower Park Crescent
Continue to Lower Park Crescent.
Charis Centre (Community Church Bishops Stortford)
Continue to Charis Centre (Community Church Bishops Stortford).
Hub Church
Continue to Hub Church.
Mars Matt's Auto Repair Services
Continue to Mars Matt's Auto Repair Services.
Totally Trade Direct
Continue to Totally Trade Direct.
Wheatsheaf
Continue to Wheatsheaf.
All Saints
Continue to All Saints.
Next
Continue to Next.
Second Hand Uniform Shop
Continue to Second Hand Uniform Shop.
Dining Hall
Continue to Dining Hall.
Ferguson Building
Continue to Ferguson Building.
Cock Inn
Continue to Cock Inn.
Dunmow Road
Continue to Dunmow Road, taking the junction with good observation.
Nag's Head
Continue to Nag's Head.
Bishop's Stortford Padel Club
Continue to Bishop's Stortford Padel Club.
Hop Poles
Continue to Hop Poles.
St Giles, Great Hallingbury
Continue to St Giles, Great Hallingbury.
Little Waitrose
Finish back near Little Waitrose, completing the loop.
11 roundabouts · 14 turns · 3 sets of lights
9 roundabouts · 12 turns · 5 sets of lights
7 roundabouts · 8 turns · 6 sets of lights
10 roundabouts · 13 turns · 4 sets of lights
This route is 24.8 km and takes about 35 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Bishop's Stortford test centre, not an official DVSA route.