Near Borehamwood test centre
Rated demanding from its real manoeuvre load, 16 roundabouts, 13 turns and 1 signalled junction across 34 navigation steps.
This is an independent 32.1 km practice route near Borehamwood 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.
Along the way you'll meet Barnet Lane and Elstree Way. 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, 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 shops, churches, named junctions 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 Borehamwood 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 92-step drive on real, named roads (about 32.1 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive east on Stirling Court.
Stirling Court19 m
Turn left onto Stirling Way.
Stirling Way105 m
Turn right onto Ripon Way.
Ripon Way38 m
Turn left onto A1/Barnet Bypass.
A1841 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Newark Green.
200 m
Exit the roundabout onto Newark Green.
Newark Green175 m
Turn right onto Balmoral Drive.
Balmoral Drive274 m
Turn right onto Warwick Road.
Warwick Road230 m
Turn right onto A5135.
A5135120 m
Move right to stay on A5135.
A5135473 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Newark Green.
130 m
Exit the roundabout onto Newark Green.
Newark Green175 m
Turn left onto Balmoral Drive.
Balmoral Drive792 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Ripon Way.
62 m
Exit the roundabout onto Ripon Way.
Ripon Way87 m
Turn left onto Dacre Gardens.
Dacre Gardens292 m
Turn left onto Ashley Drive.
Ashley Drive293 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Ripon Way.
22 m
Exit the roundabout onto Ripon Way.
Ripon Way87 m
Turn left onto Dacre Gardens.
Dacre Gardens292 m
Turn left onto Ashley Drive.
Ashley Drive293 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Ripon Way.
22 m
Exit the roundabout onto Ripon Way.
Ripon Way365 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Cranes Way.
24 m
Exit the roundabout onto Cranes Way.
Cranes Way310 m
Turn right onto Furzehill Road.
Furzehill Road495 m
Turn left onto Tennison Avenue.
Tennison Avenue27 m
Turn left onto Milton Drive.
Milton Drive98 m
Turn left to stay on Milton Drive.
Milton Drive293 m
Turn left.
19 m
Turn right onto Furzehill Road.
Furzehill Road499 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Barnet Lane/A411.
28 m
Exit the roundabout onto Barnet Lane/A411.
Barnet Lane435 m
Enter Stirling Corner and take the 3rd exit onto Barnet Road/A411.
Stirling Corner117 m
Exit the roundabout onto Barnet Road/A411.
Barnet Road1.3 km
Turn left onto Rowley Lane.
Rowley Lane1.4 km
Turn left onto Rowley Lane/A5135.
Rowley Lane246 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Rowley Lane/A5135.
97 m
Exit the roundabout onto Rowley Lane/A5135. Continue on A5135.
A5135926 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Elstree Way/A5135.
25 m
Exit the roundabout onto Elstree Way/A5135.
Elstree Way24 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Elstree Way/A5135.
3 m
Exit the roundabout onto Elstree Way/A5135.
Elstree Way509 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto B5378.
36 m
Exit the roundabout onto B5378.
B5378128 m
Enter Tesco Roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Shenley Road/B5378.
Tesco Roundabout30 m
Exit the roundabout onto Shenley Road/B5378. Continue on B5378.
B53782.1 km
Turn right onto Watling Street/A5183.
Watling Street1.6 km
Move left onto Butterfly Lane.
Butterfly Lane1.1 km
Turn left onto Aldenham Road.
Aldenham Road418 m
Turn left.
41 m
Turn left.
48 m
Turn left.
50 m
Turn right onto Aldenham Road.
Aldenham Road361 m
Turn right onto Butterfly Lane.
Butterfly Lane1.1 km
Turn left onto Watling Street/A5183. Continue on A5183.
A51832.2 km
Turn right onto Theobald Street.
Theobald Street3.1 km
Turn left onto Gateshead Road.
Gateshead Road469 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Brook Road.
60 m
Exit the roundabout onto Brook Road.
Brook Road1.1 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto B5378.
121 m
Exit the roundabout onto B5378.
B5378128 m
Enter Tesco Roundabout and take the 6th exit onto Shenley Road/B5378.
Tesco Roundabout123 m
Exit the roundabout onto Shenley Road/B5378.
Shenley Road474 m
Turn left onto Furzehill Road.
Furzehill Road868 m
Turn right to stay on Furzehill Road.
Furzehill Road28 m
Turn right onto Milton Drive.
Milton Drive61 m
Turn right to stay on Milton Drive.
Milton Drive98 m
Turn right onto Tennison Avenue.
Tennison Avenue27 m
Turn left onto Furzehill Road.
Furzehill Road77 m
Turn left onto Melrose Avenue.
Melrose Avenue324 m
Turn left to stay on Melrose Avenue.
Melrose Avenue186 m
Turn left onto Milton Drive.
Milton Drive282 m
Turn left to stay on Milton Drive.
Milton Drive98 m
Turn left onto Tennison Avenue.
Tennison Avenue310 m
Turn left onto Vale Avenue.
Vale Avenue179 m
Turn left onto Masefield Avenue.
Masefield Avenue342 m
Turn left onto Furzehill Road.
Furzehill Road72 m
Turn right to stay on Furzehill Road.
Furzehill Road28 m
Turn left to stay on Furzehill Road.
Furzehill Road126 m
Turn left onto Tennison Avenue.
Tennison Avenue27 m
Turn left onto Milton Drive.
Milton Drive98 m
Turn left to stay on Milton Drive.
Milton Drive61 m
Turn left onto Furzehill Road.
Furzehill Road28 m
Turn right to stay on Furzehill Road.
Furzehill Road76 m
Turn left onto Arundel Drive.
Arundel Drive489 m
Turn left onto Manor Way.
Manor Way417 m
Enter Kenilworth Drive and take the 2nd exit onto Manor Way.
Kenilworth Drive39 m
Exit the roundabout onto Manor Way.
Manor Way324 m
Turn right onto Chester Road.
Chester Road348 m
Turn left onto Warwick Road.
Warwick Road40 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Borehamwood · Route 4 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.
Expect busier traffic, pick-ups and pedestrians around 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 1.0 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 (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.
Charles Wilson Engineers Ltd
Start near Charles Wilson Engineers Ltd.
Holy Cross
Continue to Holy Cross.
St Paul's Lutheran Church
Continue to St Paul's Lutheran Church.
Barnet Lane
Continue to Barnet Lane, taking the junction with good observation.
Little Waitrose
Continue to Little Waitrose.
Gate
Continue to Gate.
National Tyres and Autocare
Continue to National Tyres and Autocare.
Elstree Way
Continue to Elstree Way, taking the junction with good observation.
All Saints
Continue to All Saints.
Good Companion
Continue to Good Companion.
Alfred Arms
Continue to Alfred Arms.
Elstree & Borehamwood
Continue to Elstree & Borehamwood.
Waggon and Horses
Continue to Waggon and Horses.
Battle Axes
Continue to Battle Axes.
Christ Church
Continue to Christ Church.
Co-operative Food
Continue to Co-operative Food.
St Michael and All Angels Church
Continue to St Michael and All Angels Church.
Best Food and Wine
Continue to Best Food and Wine.
Borehamwood Baptist Church
Continue to Borehamwood Baptist Church.
International Christian Fellowship
Finish back near International Christian Fellowship, completing the loop.
24 roundabouts · 12 turns · 1 set of lights
6 roundabouts · 13 turns
13 roundabouts · 12 turns · 2 sets of lights
5 roundabouts · 14 turns · 2 sets of lights
This route is 32.1 km and takes about 50 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Borehamwood test centre, not an official DVSA route.