Near Buxton test centre
Rated easy from its real manoeuvre load, 18 turns across 21 navigation steps.
This is an independent 33.1 km practice route near Buxton test centre, taking roughly 25 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 Harpur Hill Road and Trent Avenue. 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 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 schools, churches, pubs and named junctions, 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 Buxton 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 70-step drive on real, named roads (about 33.0 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive southwest on Green Lane.
Green Lane852 m
Keep left to stay on Green Lane.
Green Lane69 m
Turn right onto Temple Road.
Temple Road90 m
Turn right to stay on Temple Road.
Temple Road446 m
Turn right onto College Road.
College Road349 m
Turn left onto Green Lane.
Green Lane86 m
Turn left onto Robertson Road.
Robertson Road238 m
Turn right onto Spencer Road.
Spencer Road215 m
Turn right onto Green Lane.
Green Lane810 m
Keep left to stay on Green Lane.
Green Lane69 m
Turn right onto Temple Road.
Temple Road90 m
Turn right to stay on Temple Road.
Temple Road446 m
Turn right onto College Road.
College Road67 m
Turn left onto Spencer Road.
Spencer Road391 m
Keep left to take Compton Road.
Compton Road121 m
Turn right onto Mosley Road.
Mosley Road350 m
Turn left onto A515/London Road.
A51519 m
Keep right to stay on A515.
A515435 m
Turn left onto Chapel Street.
Chapel Street37 m
Keep left to stay on Chapel Street.
Chapel Street12 m
Turn left onto Torr Street.
Torr Street130 m
Turn left onto Bath Road.
Bath Road62 m
Turn right onto A515/High Street. Continue on A515.
A515320 m
Keep left to stay on A515.
A515568 m
Turn right onto Harpur Hill Road.
Harpur Hill Road305 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Harpur Hill Road.
34 m
Exit the roundabout onto Harpur Hill Road.
Harpur Hill Road390 m
Turn left onto Berwick Road.
Berwick Road700 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Harpur Hill Road.
17 m
Exit the roundabout onto Harpur Hill Road.
Harpur Hill Road900 m
Move left onto Burlow Road.
Burlow Road2.7 km
Turn right.
2.2 km
Move right onto Buxton Road/B5053.
Buxton Road1.1 km
Keep left to stay on Buxton Road/B5053.
Buxton Road1.2 km
Keep right to stay on Buxton Road/B5053.
Buxton Road849 m
Turn left onto Church Street.
Church Street9 m
Turn left onto Lane Head.
Lane Head289 m
Turn right onto Buxton Road/B5053.
Buxton Road792 m
Keep left to stay on Buxton Road/B5053.
Buxton Road4.4 km
Turn left onto A515/Buxton Road.
A515595 m
Keep right to stay on A515/Buxton Road.
A5151.7 km
Keep left to stay on A515/Buxton Road.
A5151.8 km
Keep right to take A515/London Road.
A515109 m
Keep right to stay on A515.
A515367 m
Turn left onto Chapel Street.
Chapel Street50 m
Turn left onto Torr Street.
Torr Street130 m
Turn left onto Bath Road.
Bath Road62 m
Turn right onto A515/High Street. Continue on A515.
A515320 m
Keep left to stay on A515.
A515595 m
Move left onto Duke's Drive.
Duke's Drive1.6 km
Turn right to stay on Duke's Drive.
Duke's Drive21 m
Turn left onto A6.
A623 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Dale Road/B5059.
15 m
Exit the roundabout onto Dale Road/B5059.
Dale Road406 m
Turn right onto Darwin Avenue.
Darwin Avenue203 m
Turn right onto Hardwick Square South.
Hardwick Square South162 m
Turn left onto Holker Road.
Holker Road257 m
Turn left.
43 m
Make a right U-turn.
43 m
Turn left onto Holker Road.
Holker Road25 m
Turn right onto Spring Gardens.
Spring Gardens57 m
Turn left onto Bridge Street.
Bridge Street44 m
Turn left onto A53/Bridge Street.
A5360 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A53/Station Road.
21 m
Exit the roundabout onto A53/Station Road.
A53412 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A515/The Quadrant.
12 m
Exit the roundabout onto A515/The Quadrant. Continue on A515.
A515824 m
Move right onto Green Lane.
Green Lane910 m
Keep left to stay on Green Lane.
Green Lane6 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Buxton · 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.
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 7.5 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, 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.
A Block
Start near A Block.
E Block
Continue to E Block.
F Block
Continue to F Block.
Buxton Community Church
Continue to Buxton Community Church.
Buxton Methodist Church
Continue to Buxton Methodist Church.
St Anne
Continue to St Anne.
Blazing Rag
Continue to Blazing Rag.
Harpur Hill Road
Continue to Harpur Hill Road, taking the junction with good observation.
Trent Avenue
Continue to Trent Avenue, taking the junction with good observation.
Harpur Stores
Continue to Harpur Stores.
Parks Inn
Continue to Parks Inn.
St James
Continue to St James.
Longnor Community Fire Station
Continue to Longnor Community Fire Station.
Pets Corner
Continue to Pets Corner.
Buxton Infant School
Continue to Buxton Infant School.
Scope
Continue to Scope.
Trinity Church
Continue to Trinity Church.
Buxton
Continue to Buxton.
Church in the Peak Buxton
Continue to Church in the Peak Buxton.
Saint Anne's Catholic Church
Finish back near Saint Anne's Catholic Church, completing the loop.
23 turns
28 turns
20 turns
19 turns
This route is 33.1 km and takes about 25 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Buxton test centre, not an official DVSA route.