Near Borehamwood test centre
Rated demanding from its real manoeuvre load, 19 roundabouts and 7 turns across 29 navigation steps.
This is an independent 22.3 km practice route near Borehamwood test centre, taking roughly 45 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 Elstree Way and Kenilworth Drive. 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, 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, named junctions, pubs and churches, 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 81-step drive on real, named roads (about 22.3 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 left onto A5135.
A5135461 m
Enter Elstree Way and take the 3rd exit onto Elstree Way/A5135.
Elstree Way45 m
Exit the roundabout onto Elstree Way/A5135. Continue on A5135.
A5135588 m
Move left.
52 m
Move left onto Rowley Lane.
Rowley Lane442 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Rowley Lane.
24 m
Exit the roundabout onto Rowley Lane.
Rowley Lane367 m
Turn left onto Well End Road.
Well End Road314 m
Turn left onto Potters Lane.
Potters Lane525 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Potters Lane.
39 m
Exit the roundabout onto Potters Lane.
Potters Lane281 m
Turn right onto Cowley Hill/B5378.
Cowley Hill1.3 km
Turn left onto Stapleton Road.
Stapleton Road597 m
Move left onto Brampton Terrace.
Brampton Terrace81 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Aycliffe Road.
34 m
Exit the roundabout onto Aycliffe Road.
Aycliffe Road435 m
Turn left onto Leeming Road.
Leeming Road300 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Gateshead Road.
21 m
Exit the roundabout onto Gateshead Road.
Gateshead Road374 m
Turn right onto Grove Road.
Grove Road446 m
Turn left onto Brook Road.
Brook Road240 m
Turn left onto Hartforde Road.
Hartforde Road631 m
Turn left onto Oddesey Road.
Oddesey Road128 m
Turn left onto Caishowe Road.
Caishowe Road402 m
Turn left onto Hartforde Road.
Hartforde Road384 m
Turn left onto Cowley Hill/B5378.
Cowley Hill729 m
Turn left to stay on Cowley Hill.
Cowley Hill11 m
Turn left to stay on Cowley Hill.
Cowley Hill185 m
Turn right onto Cowley Hill/B5378. Continue on B5378.
B53781.5 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto B5378.
72 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.
Shenley Road207 m
Turn left onto Cardinal Avenue.
Cardinal Avenue462 m
Turn right onto Hillside Avenue.
Hillside Avenue207 m
Turn left onto Furzehill Road.
Furzehill Road368 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 Road242 m
Turn right onto Hillside Avenue.
Hillside Avenue768 m
Move left onto Bullhead Road.
Bullhead Road5 m
Turn left to stay on Bullhead Road.
Bullhead Road510 m
Turn right onto Elstree Way/A5135.
Elstree Way118 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Elstree Way/A5135.
22 m
Exit the roundabout onto Elstree Way/A5135.
Elstree Way21 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Manor Way.
22 m
Exit the roundabout onto Manor Way.
Manor Way540 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Kenilworth Drive.
25 m
Exit the roundabout onto Kenilworth Drive.
Kenilworth Drive209 m
Turn right onto Norfolk Gardens.
Norfolk Gardens402 m
Turn right onto Arundel Drive.
Arundel Drive194 m
Turn right onto Manor Way.
Manor Way417 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Kenilworth Drive.
20 m
Exit the roundabout onto Kenilworth Drive.
Kenilworth Drive72 m
Turn left onto Thornbury Gardens.
Thornbury Gardens439 m
Turn left onto Arundel Drive.
Arundel Drive285 m
Turn left onto Norfolk Gardens.
Norfolk Gardens402 m
Turn left onto Kenilworth Drive.
Kenilworth Drive209 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Kenilworth Drive.
80 m
Exit the roundabout onto Kenilworth Drive.
Kenilworth Drive433 m
Turn right onto Balmoral Drive.
Balmoral Drive222 m
Turn left onto Howard Drive.
Howard Drive86 m
Turn left onto Tempsford Avenue.
Tempsford Avenue420 m
Turn right onto Newark Green.
Newark Green77 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Rowley Lane/A5135.
60 m
Exit the roundabout onto Rowley Lane/A5135. Continue on A5135.
A5135926 m
Enter Elstree Way and take the 1st exit onto Manor Way.
Elstree Way3 m
Exit the roundabout onto Manor Way.
Manor Way216 m
Turn left 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 7 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.
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 0.8 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.
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.
Elstree Way
Continue to Elstree Way, taking the junction with good observation.
Mops & Brooms
Continue to Mops & Brooms.
Co-op Food
Continue to Co-op Food.
St Michael and All Angels Church
Continue to St Michael and All Angels Church.
Hartforde Road common ground
Continue to Hartforde Road common ground.
Hartforde Road Shops
Continue to Hartforde Road Shops.
Morrisons Daily
Continue to Morrisons Daily.
Good Companion
Continue to Good Companion.
Pick & Shovel
Continue to Pick & Shovel.
St Teresa of the Child Jesus
Continue to St Teresa of the Child Jesus.
Kings Kebabs
Continue to Kings Kebabs.
Evans Halshaw
Continue to Evans Halshaw.
Kwik Fit
Continue to Kwik Fit.
Kenilworth Drive
Continue to Kenilworth Drive, taking the junction with good observation.
International Christian Fellowship
Continue to International Christian Fellowship.
Holy Cross
Continue to Holy Cross.
Halfords Autocentre
Continue to Halfords Autocentre.
M&S Simply Food
Continue to M&S Simply Food.
National Tyres and Autocare
Finish back near National Tyres and Autocare, 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 22.3 km and takes about 45 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Borehamwood test centre, not an official DVSA route.