Near Bury St Edmunds test centre
Rated moderate from its real manoeuvre load, 9 roundabouts, 10 turns and 1 signalled junction across 22 navigation steps.
This is an independent 63.8 km practice loop near Bury St Edmunds test centre, taking roughly 30 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 Woolpit Interchange and Sicklesmere 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 stations, churches, pubs and shops, 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 91-step drive on real, named roads (about 63.8 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 left onto Tayfen Road/A143. Continue on A143.
A143458 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Parkway South/A143.
27 m
Exit the roundabout onto Parkway South/A143.
Parkway South308 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Parkway South/A143.
22 m
Exit the roundabout onto Parkway South/A143.
Parkway South38 m
Keep left to take Robert Boby Way.
Robert Boby Way372 m
Turn left onto St Andrews Street South.
St Andrews Street South108 m
Turn left onto King's Road.
King's Road241 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Parkway South/A143.
43 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. Continue on A143.
A143458 m
Turn right onto St Andrews Street North.
St Andrews Street North397 m
Turn right onto Risbygate Street.
Risbygate Street287 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Parkway South/A143.
4 m
Exit the roundabout onto Parkway South/A143.
Parkway South308 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Parkway South/A143.
22 m
Exit the roundabout onto Parkway South/A143.
Parkway South571 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Out Westgate/A143.
34 m
Exit the roundabout onto Out Westgate/A143. Continue on A143.
A1431.5 km
Turn right onto Glastonbury Road.
Glastonbury Road853 m
Turn left onto Wigston Road.
Wigston Road447 m
Turn right onto Glastonbury Road.
Glastonbury Road1.1 km
Turn left onto Horringer Road/A143. Continue on A143.
A143998 m
Turn left onto Petticoat Lane.
Petticoat Lane163 m
Move left onto Hospital Road.
Hospital Road443 m
Turn left onto Abbot Road.
Abbot Road424 m
Turn right onto Abbot Close.
Abbot Close61 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Abbot Close.
Abbot Close61 m
Turn right onto Abbot Road.
Abbot Road208 m
Turn right onto Winchester Road.
Winchester Road96 m
Turn left to stay on Winchester Road.
Winchester Road199 m
Turn left onto Albemarle Road.
Albemarle Road54 m
Turn right onto Cadogan Road.
Cadogan Road273 m
Turn left onto Gainsborough Road.
Gainsborough Road204 m
Turn left onto Westley Road.
Westley Road560 m
Turn right onto Oliver Road.
Oliver Road935 m
Turn right onto Newmarket Road/A1302. Continue on A1302.
A13021.8 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Parkway North/A143.
3 m
Exit the roundabout onto Parkway North/A143. Continue on A143.
A143602 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 2nd exit onto Compiegne Way/A143.
56 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.
A1413.4 km
Take exit 47.
221 m
Move left onto A1088.
A108895 m
Enter Woolpit Interchange and take the 1st exit onto Elmswell Road/A1088.
Woolpit Interchange6 m
Exit the roundabout onto Elmswell Road/A1088.
Elmswell Road481 m
Enter Woolpit Interchange and take the 1st exit.
Woolpit Interchange9 m
Exit the roundabout onto A14/E 24.
A148.3 km
Take exit 45.
173 m
Turn right onto The Battlies.
The Battlies310 m
Turn right onto Blackthorpe.
Blackthorpe578 m
Turn left onto Elderstub Lane.
Elderstub Lane1.6 km
Move right onto Eastlowhill Road.
Eastlowhill Road2.0 km
Turn right.
102 m
Turn left onto Bury Road.
Bury Road2.5 km
Turn left.
1.6 km
Turn left.
953 m
Turn left onto Felsham Road.
Felsham Road473 m
Move left onto Hollybush Corner.
Hollybush Corner3.7 km
Turn right onto A134.
A1341.9 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A134/Sicklesmere Road.
34 m
Exit the roundabout onto A134/Sicklesmere Road.
A1341.3 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto A134.
88 m
Exit the roundabout onto A134.
A134406 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A134.
21 m
Exit the roundabout onto A134.
A134184 m
Enter Moreton Hall Interchange and take the 1st exit.
Moreton Hall Interchange13 m
Exit the roundabout onto A14/E 24.
A141.8 km
Take exit 43.
A14256 m
Enter St Saviours Interchange and take the 4th exit onto A134/Compiegne Way.
St Saviours Interchange256 m
Exit the roundabout onto A134/Compiegne Way.
A1341.0 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto A143/Compiegne Way.
86 m
Exit the roundabout onto A143/Compiegne Way.
A143579 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto A143/Compiegne Way.
76 m
Exit the roundabout onto A143/Compiegne Way.
A143578 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A134/Compiegne Way.
37 m
Exit the roundabout onto A134/Compiegne Way.
A134985 m
Enter St Saviours Interchange and take the 3rd exit onto Compiegne Way/A143.
St Saviours Interchange221 m
Exit the roundabout onto Compiegne Way/A143.
Compiegne Way402 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A143.
45 m
Exit the roundabout onto A143.
A143169 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Tayfen Road/A143.
12 m
Exit the roundabout onto Tayfen Road/A143. Continue on A143.
A143470 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Bury St Edmunds · Route 2 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.
Watch for 20 mph zones, crossings and children near 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 30.1 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 (20, 30, 40, 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.
Bury St Edmunds Bus and Coach Station
Start near Bury St Edmunds Bus and Coach Station.
Quaker Meeting House
Continue to Quaker Meeting House.
Rising Sun
Continue to Rising Sun.
Court Patisserie
Continue to Court Patisserie.
Horringer News
Continue to Horringer News.
Jasmine
Continue to Jasmine.
Spread Eagle
Continue to Spread Eagle.
Kids Play Childcare
Continue to Kids Play Childcare.
Londis
Continue to Londis.
Beerhouse
Continue to Beerhouse.
Juke's Bar
Continue to Juke's Bar.
Woolpit Interchange
Continue to Woolpit Interchange, taking the junction with good observation.
Gospel Hall
Continue to Gospel Hall.
St Mary Magdalene
Continue to St Mary Magdalene.
Sicklesmere Road
Continue to Sicklesmere Road, taking the junction with good observation.
Village Shop
Continue to Village Shop.
Abbey Interiors
Continue to Abbey Interiors.
Smith & Wareham Kitchens & Bathrooms
Continue to Smith & Wareham Kitchens & Bathrooms.
Hartwell Blind Company
Continue to Hartwell Blind Company.
Nisa Local
Finish back near Nisa Local, completing the loop.
8 roundabouts · 12 turns · 2 sets of lights
18 roundabouts · 6 turns · 1 set of lights
15 roundabouts · 4 turns
9 roundabouts · 15 turns · 2 sets of lights
This route is 63.8 km and takes about 30 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.