Near Borehamwood test centre
Rated challenging from its real manoeuvre load, 10 roundabouts, 11 turns and 2 signalled junctions across 23 navigation steps.
This is an independent 31.9 km practice route near Borehamwood 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 Barnet Lane. 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, 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 87-step drive on real, named roads (about 31.9 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 1st exit onto Manor Way.
Elstree Way3 m
Exit the roundabout onto Manor Way.
Manor Way540 m
Enter Kenilworth Drive and take the 2nd exit onto Manor Way.
Kenilworth Drive41 m
Exit the roundabout onto Manor Way.
Manor Way527 m
Enter Ripon Way and take the 2nd exit onto Cranes Way.
Ripon Way48 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 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 right to stay on A5135.
A5135473 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Rowley Lane/A5135.
86 m
Exit the roundabout onto Rowley Lane/A5135. Continue on A5135.
A5135339 m
Stay straight to take the ramp towards A1.
A11.5 km
Enter Stirling Corner and take the 2nd exit onto A1/Barnet Way.
Stirling Corner98 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1/Barnet Way.
A12.4 km
Enter Apex Corner and take the 3rd exit onto A41/Watford By-pass.
Apex Corner93 m
Exit the roundabout onto A41/Watford By-pass. Continue on A41.
A41265 m
Make a right U-turn at Mount Grove to stay on A41.
A41289 m
Enter Apex Corner and take the 1st exit onto A1/Barnet Way.
Apex Corner23 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1/Barnet Way.
A12.4 km
Enter Stirling Corner and take the 4th exit onto Barnet Road/A411.
Stirling Corner165 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.
B53781.5 km
Turn left onto Knowl Way.
Knowl Way150 m
Turn left onto Lodge Avenue.
Lodge Avenue253 m
Turn right onto Grange Road.
Grange Road321 m
Turn right onto Bishops Avenue.
Bishops Avenue140 m
Turn right onto Lodge Avenue.
Lodge Avenue187 m
Turn right onto Grange Road.
Grange Road321 m
Turn left onto Bishops Avenue.
Bishops Avenue148 m
Turn left onto The Rise.
The Rise275 m
Turn left onto Deacons Hill Road.
Deacons Hill Road527 m
Turn left onto Allum Lane/B5378.
Allum Lane527 m
Turn left onto Knowl Way.
Knowl Way150 m
Turn left onto Lodge Avenue.
Lodge Avenue453 m
Turn right onto Allum Lane/B5378.
Allum Lane375 m
Turn left onto Theobald Street.
Theobald Street156 m
Turn left onto Theobald Court.
Theobald Court63 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Theobald Court.
Theobald Court63 m
Turn left onto Theobald Street.
Theobald Street274 m
Turn right onto Stratfield Road.
Stratfield Road711 m
Turn left onto Brook Road.
Brook Road143 m
Turn left onto Aberford Road.
Aberford Road75 m
Turn left onto Canterbury Road.
Canterbury Road111 m
Turn left onto Stratfield Road.
Stratfield Road60 m
Turn right onto Brook Road.
Brook Road428 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Elstree Way/A5135.
57 m
Exit the roundabout onto Elstree Way/A5135.
Elstree Way509 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 1st exit onto Elstree Way/A5135.
4 m
Exit the roundabout onto Elstree Way/A5135. Continue on A5135.
A5135467 m
Turn right onto Warwick Road.
Warwick Road189 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Borehamwood · Route 9 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.
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 8.1 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 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.
International Christian Fellowship
Continue to International Christian Fellowship.
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.
M&S Simply Food
Continue to M&S Simply Food.
National Tyres and Autocare
Continue to National Tyres and Autocare.
Firework Corner
Continue to Firework Corner.
Pizza Nero
Continue to Pizza Nero.
KFC
Continue to KFC.
Shell Select
Continue to Shell Select.
Scratchwood Park
Continue to Scratchwood Park.
Borehamwood Fire Station
Continue to Borehamwood Fire Station.
All Saints
Continue to All Saints.
Elstree & Borehamwood
Continue to Elstree & Borehamwood.
Asda
Continue to Asda.
Halfords
Continue to Halfords.
Wellington
Continue to Wellington.
Venue
Finish back near Venue, 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 31.9 km and takes about 35 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Borehamwood test centre, not an official DVSA route.