Near Cambridge (Hardwick) test centre
Rated challenging from its real manoeuvre load, 17 roundabouts and 6 turns across 31 navigation steps.
This is an independent 27.2 km practice loop near Cambridge (Hardwick) test centre, taking roughly 20 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 Hardwick Interchange and Haggis Farm Interchange. 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 independent driving 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 5 catalogued landmarks, including churches, named junctions 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 Cambridge (Hardwick) 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:
The full 31-step drive on real, named roads (about 27.2 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive north.
99 m
Turn right onto St Neots Road.
St Neots Road1.0 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Church Lane.
71 m
Exit the roundabout onto Church Lane.
Church Lane2.8 km
Turn left onto Huntingdon Road/A1307.
Huntingdon Road1.6 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Dry Drayton Road/A1307.
78 m
Exit the roundabout onto Dry Drayton Road/A1307.
Dry Drayton Road605 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto A1307.
104 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1307.
A1307601 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Oakington Road.
48 m
Exit the roundabout onto Oakington Road.
Oakington Road1.2 km
Move right onto Park Street.
Park Street549 m
Move left onto Scotland Road.
Scotland Road2.4 km
Enter Hardwick Interchange and take the 5th exit onto A428.
Hardwick Interchange180 m
Exit the roundabout onto A428.
A4281.9 km
Take the Madingley exit.
816 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A1303/St Neots Road.
72 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1303/St Neots Road. Continue on A1303.
A13032.8 km
Turn right to take the M11 ramp towards London.
M112.0 km
Take exit 12 onto A603 towards Cambridge/Sandy.
548 m
Move left onto A603.
A603107 m
Enter Haggis Farm Interchange and take the 4th exit onto A603.
Haggis Farm Interchange168 m
Exit the roundabout onto A603.
A603547 m
Enter Haggis Farm Interchange and take the 2nd exit.
Haggis Farm Interchange74 m
Exit the roundabout onto M11.
M112.6 km
Take exit 13 onto A1303 towards Cambridge/Bedford.
513 m
Turn left onto A1303/Madingley Road. Continue on A1303.
A13032.6 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto St Neots Road.
10 m
Exit the roundabout onto St Neots Road.
St Neots Road1.0 km
Turn left.
99 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Cambridge (Hardwick) · Roundabout practice loop 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.
Frequent stop-start traffic and pedestrians, keep your speed down.
Local junctions
Take each junction on its merits, good observation, clear signalling and the right speed on approach. Rehearse the sequence so nothing surprises you on the day.
Navigate by these 5 catalogued landmarks rather than a memorised turn list, an indicative loop, not an official DVSA route.
St Mary Magdalene
Start near St Mary Magdalene.
Hardwick Interchange
Continue to Hardwick Interchange, taking the junction with good observation.
Two Little Cats
Continue to Two Little Cats.
Madingly Mulch
Continue to Madingly Mulch.
Haggis Farm Interchange
Finish back near Haggis Farm Interchange, completing the loop.
4 roundabouts · 18 turns
6 roundabouts · 12 turns
4 roundabouts · 25 turns
4 roundabouts · 2 turns
This route is 27.2 km and takes about 20 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Cambridge (Hardwick) test centre, not an official DVSA route.