Near Cardiff test centre
Rated demanding from its real manoeuvre load, 10 roundabouts and 29 turns across 58 navigation steps.
This is an independent 9.4 km practice loop near Cardiff 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 Thornhill 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 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 shops, named junctions, churches 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 Cardiff 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 58-step drive on real, named roads (about 10.4 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive east.
19 m
Turn right.
26 m
Turn left onto Lambourne Crescent.
Lambourne Crescent55 m
Turn left to stay on Lambourne Crescent.
Lambourne Crescent186 m
Turn left to stay on Lambourne Crescent.
Lambourne Crescent87 m
Turn right onto Parc Tŷ Glas.
Parc Tŷ Glas305 m
Turn left onto Tŷ Glas Avenue.
Tŷ Glas Avenue912 m
Enter Thornhill Road and take the 1st exit onto Caerphilly Road/A469.
Thornhill Road2 m
Exit the roundabout onto Caerphilly Road/A469.
Caerphilly Road214 m
Move left.
159 m
Move left onto Caerphilly Road/A469.
Caerphilly Road303 m
Turn left onto Maes-y-coed Road.
Maes-y-coed Road336 m
Turn right onto Ton-yr-ywen Avenue.
Ton-yr-ywen Avenue152 m
Turn left onto St Brigid Road.
St Brigid Road192 m
Turn left onto Heathway.
Heathway159 m
Turn left onto Maes-y-coed Road.
Maes-y-coed Road191 m
Turn left onto Ton-yr-ywen Avenue.
Ton-yr-ywen Avenue52 m
Keep straight to stay on Ton-yr-ywen Avenue.
Ton-yr-ywen Avenue99 m
Turn left onto St Brigid Road.
St Brigid Road192 m
Turn left onto Heathway.
Heathway159 m
Turn left onto Maes-y-coed Road.
Maes-y-coed Road489 m
Keep right to stay on Maes-y-coed Road.
Maes-y-coed Road37 m
Turn right onto Caerphilly Road/A469.
Caerphilly Road675 m
Enter Thornhill Road and take the 3rd exit onto Tŷ Glas Road/B4562.
Thornhill Road27 m
Exit the roundabout onto Tŷ Glas Road/B4562.
Tŷ Glas Road190 m
Keep left to stay on Tŷ Glas Road/B4562.
Tŷ Glas Road346 m
Turn left to stay on Tŷ Glas Road/B4562.
Tŷ Glas Road300 m
Keep right to stay on Tŷ Glas Road/B4562.
Tŷ Glas Road103 m
Keep right to stay on Tŷ Glas Road/B4562.
Tŷ Glas Road102 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Station Road/B4562.
32 m
Exit the roundabout onto Station Road/B4562.
Station Road101 m
Turn right onto Llanishen Court.
Llanishen Court66 m
Turn left to stay on Llanishen Court.
Llanishen Court32 m
Turn left.
4 m
Make a right U-turn.
4 m
Turn right onto Llanishen Court.
Llanishen Court32 m
Turn right to stay on Llanishen Court.
Llanishen Court66 m
Turn left onto Station Road/B4562.
Station Road100 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Heol Hir.
37 m
Exit the roundabout onto Heol Hir.
Heol Hir64 m
Keep left to stay on Heol Hir.
Heol Hir593 m
Turn left onto Llanon Road.
Llanon Road373 m
Turn right onto Bardsey Crescent.
Bardsey Crescent275 m
Turn right onto Johnston Road.
Johnston Road158 m
Keep right to stay on Johnston Road.
Johnston Road110 m
Keep left to stay on Johnston Road.
Johnston Road509 m
Turn right onto Templeton Avenue.
Templeton Avenue79 m
Turn left onto Thornhill Road/A469.
Thornhill Road488 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Tŷ Glas Road/B4562.
3 m
Exit the roundabout onto Tŷ Glas Road/B4562.
Tŷ Glas Road131 m
Turn right onto Ashbourn Way.
Ashbourn Way562 m
Turn left onto Malvern Drive.
Malvern Drive145 m
Turn right onto Parc Tŷ Glas.
Parc Tŷ Glas131 m
Turn right onto Lambourne Crescent.
Lambourne Crescent70 m
Turn left to stay on Lambourne Crescent.
Lambourne Crescent105 m
Turn left.
26 m
Turn left.
19 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Cardiff · Residential 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.
Easy landmarks to navigate the loop by.
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 20 catalogued landmarks rather than a memorised turn list, an indicative loop, not an official DVSA route.
Marks & Spencer
Start near Marks & Spencer.
Specsavers
Continue to Specsavers.
Saltmarshe Picture Framing
Continue to Saltmarshe Picture Framing.
Medi Optics
Continue to Medi Optics.
Thornhill Road
Continue to Thornhill Road, taking the junction with good observation.
City Hospice Charity Shop
Continue to City Hospice Charity Shop.
Saint Isan
Continue to Saint Isan.
Graham's Barber Shop
Continue to Graham's Barber Shop.
Parson's Bakery
Continue to Parson's Bakery.
Church Inn
Continue to Church Inn.
St Isan Church Hall
Continue to St Isan Church Hall.
North Road Medical Centre
Continue to North Road Medical Centre.
Smelly Paws
Continue to Smelly Paws.
Thornhill Memorials
Continue to Thornhill Memorials.
Mike's Furnishings
Continue to Mike's Furnishings.
Papa John's
Continue to Papa John's.
B&M
Continue to B&M.
Timpson
Continue to Timpson.
Greggs
Continue to Greggs.
Toolstation
Finish back near Toolstation, completing the loop.
14 roundabouts · 18 turns
14 roundabouts · 20 turns
16 roundabouts · 21 turns
8 roundabouts · 15 turns
This route is 9.4 km and takes about 20 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Cardiff test centre, not an official DVSA route.