Near Bury St Edmunds test centre
Rated demanding from its real manoeuvre load, 13 roundabouts, 11 turns and 2 signalled junctions across 32 navigation steps.
This is an independent 20.9 km practice loop near Bury St Edmunds 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.
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 pubs, churches, shops and parks, 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 Bury St Edmunds 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 73-step drive on real, named roads (about 20.9 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive east.
58 m
Turn left onto St Andrews Street North.
St Andrews Street North192 m
Turn right onto Tayfen Road/A143.
Tayfen Road144 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Tayfen Road/A143.
16 m
Exit the roundabout onto Tayfen Road/A143. Continue on A143.
A143164 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Northgate Street.
89 m
Exit the roundabout onto Northgate Street.
Northgate Street339 m
Turn right onto St Michael's Close.
St Michael's Close60 m
Turn left onto Northgate Street.
Northgate Street323 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Northgate Street/A1101.
60 m
Exit the roundabout onto Northgate Street/A1101. Continue on A1101.
A11011.4 km
Turn left onto Wordsworth Road.
Wordsworth Road101 m
Turn right onto Acacia Avenue.
Acacia Avenue157 m
Turn right onto Shelley Road.
Shelley Road82 m
Turn right onto Mitchell Avenue.
Mitchell Avenue157 m
Turn left onto Wordsworth Road.
Wordsworth Road18 m
Turn left onto Mildenhall Road/A1101.
Mildenhall Road377 m
Turn left onto Trent Road.
Trent Road105 m
Turn left onto Acacia Avenue.
Acacia Avenue544 m
Turn left onto Philip Road.
Philip Road318 m
Turn left onto Tollgate Lane.
Tollgate Lane193 m
Turn left onto Mildenhall Road/A1101.
Mildenhall Road446 m
Turn left onto Wordsworth Road.
Wordsworth Road101 m
Turn left onto Gloucester Road.
Gloucester Road167 m
Turn left onto Philip Road.
Philip Road318 m
Turn left onto Tollgate Lane.
Tollgate Lane258 m
Turn right onto Fornham Road/A1101.
Fornham Road123 m
Turn left onto Fornham Road/A1101. Continue on A1101.
A1101917 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Compiegne Way/A143.
7 m
Exit the roundabout onto Compiegne Way/A143.
Compiegne Way23 m
Turn left to stay on Compiegne Way/A143.
Compiegne Way386 m
Enter St Saviours Interchange and take the 5th exit onto A14.
St Saviours Interchange369 m
Exit the roundabout onto A14/E 24.
A141.6 km
Take exit 44.
354 m
Enter Moreton Hall Interchange and take the 3rd exit onto A134.
Moreton Hall Interchange229 m
Exit the roundabout onto A134.
A134185 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A134.
54 m
Exit the roundabout onto A134.
A134404 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Southgate Green.
95 m
Exit the roundabout onto Southgate Green.
Southgate Green43 m
Move right onto Southgate Street.
Southgate Street370 m
Move left onto Maynewater Lane.
Maynewater Lane337 m
Turn left onto Westgate Street.
Westgate Street80 m
Turn right onto Crown Street.
Crown Street544 m
Turn right onto Angel Hill.
Angel Hill980 m
Move left onto Hollow Road.
Hollow Road771 m
Turn right onto Chapel Pond Hill.
Chapel Pond Hill379 m
Turn left to stay on Chapel Pond Hill.
Chapel Pond Hill1 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Chapel Pond Hill.
Chapel Pond Hill1 m
Turn right to stay on Chapel Pond Hill.
Chapel Pond Hill379 m
Turn left onto Hollow Road.
Hollow Road771 m
Move right onto Eastgate Street.
Eastgate Street980 m
Turn left onto Angel Hill.
Angel Hill369 m
Turn left onto Honey Hill.
Honey Hill192 m
Turn right onto Raingate Street.
Raingate Street72 m
Turn right onto Swan Lane.
Swan Lane99 m
Turn right onto St Mary's Square.
St Mary's Square187 m
Turn right onto Crown Street.
Crown Street149 m
Turn right onto Honey Hill.
Honey Hill84 m
Turn right onto Sparhawk Street.
Sparhawk Street143 m
Move left onto St Mary's Square.
St Mary's Square39 m
Make a sharp right to stay on St Mary's Square.
St Mary's Square550 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Parkway South/A143.
34 m
Exit the roundabout onto Parkway South/A143.
Parkway South571 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Parkway South/A143.
56 m
Exit the roundabout onto Parkway South/A143.
Parkway South571 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Parkway South/A143.
47 m
Exit the roundabout onto Parkway South/A143.
Parkway South571 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Parkway South/A143.
15 m
Exit the roundabout onto Parkway South/A143.
Parkway South311 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Parkway North/A143.
24 m
Exit the roundabout onto Parkway North/A143.
Parkway North130 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Bury St Edmunds · Route 19 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.
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 3.3 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, 60, 70 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.
Beerhouse
Start near Beerhouse.
Quaker Meeting House
Continue to Quaker Meeting House.
Linden Tree
Continue to Linden Tree.
Seventh Day Adventist Chapel
Continue to Seventh Day Adventist Chapel.
Londis
Continue to Londis.
Gladwells Pet and Country Store
Continue to Gladwells Pet and Country Store.
Tollgate
Continue to Tollgate.
Urban Society
Continue to Urban Society.
Tesco Click & Collect
Continue to Tesco Click & Collect.
Abbey Interiors
Continue to Abbey Interiors.
M&S Simply Food
Continue to M&S Simply Food.
Dog & Partridge Inn
Continue to Dog & Partridge Inn.
Saint Edmundsbury Cathedral
Continue to Saint Edmundsbury Cathedral.
Eastgate Stores
Continue to Eastgate Stores.
St Mary
Continue to St Mary.
St Mary's Square
Continue to St Mary's Square.
Catholic Church of St Edmund King & Martyr
Continue to Catholic Church of St Edmund King & Martyr.
Hung Tao (chinese)
Continue to Hung Tao (chinese).
Halfords
Continue to Halfords.
KFC
Finish back near KFC, completing the loop.
8 roundabouts · 12 turns · 2 sets of lights
9 roundabouts · 10 turns · 1 set of lights
18 roundabouts · 6 turns · 1 set of lights
15 roundabouts · 4 turns
This route is 20.9 km and takes about 45 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Bury St Edmunds test centre, not an official DVSA route.