Near Cheetham Hill test centre
Rated demanding from its real manoeuvre load, 24 turns and 11 signalled junctions across 32 navigation steps.
This is an independent 27.0 km practice loop near Cheetham Hill 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, 20 mph zones, residential manoeuvres, busy a-roads, 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 20 catalogued landmarks, including shops, stations, 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 Cheetham Hill 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 66-step drive on real, named roads (about 27.0 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive southeast on Alderglen Road.
Alderglen Road268 m
Turn left onto Heywood Street.
Heywood Street462 m
Turn left onto Bellott Street.
Bellott Street238 m
Turn left onto Waterloo Road/B6180.
Waterloo Road398 m
Turn left onto A6010/Elizabeth Street. Continue on A6010.
A6010693 m
Turn left onto A665/Cheetham Hill Road.
A665246 m
Turn right onto Smedley Street.
Smedley Street121 m
Turn right onto Boyle Street.
Boyle Street187 m
Turn left onto A6010/Queens Road.
A6010868 m
Turn right onto Collyhurst Road.
Collyhurst Road1.4 km
Turn left onto Dalton Street.
Dalton Street425 m
Turn right to stay on Dalton Street.
Dalton Street99 m
Turn left onto A664/Rochdale Road.
A664560 m
Turn left onto Eggington Street.
Eggington Street258 m
Turn right onto Collyhurst Road.
Collyhurst Road464 m
Turn left onto A6010/Queens Road.
A60101.0 km
Turn left onto A665/Cheetham Hill Road. Continue on Cheetham Hill Road.
Cheetham Hill Road1.5 km
Turn left onto A665/Corporation Street. Continue on A665.
A665206 m
Turn left onto Dantzic Street.
Dantzic Street92 m
Turn left to stay on Dantzic Street.
Dantzic Street128 m
Turn right onto Red Bank.
Red Bank282 m
Turn left onto Lord Street.
Lord Street173 m
Turn left onto A665/Cheetham Hill Road. Continue on Cheetham Hill Road.
Cheetham Hill Road478 m
Turn right onto Corporation Street.
Corporation Street323 m
Turn left onto Withy Grove.
Withy Grove507 m
Turn left onto A665/Miller Street.
A665500 m
Turn left to take the ramp.
Cheetham Hill Road36 m
Move left onto A34/Trinity Way.
A341.3 km
Turn left onto Chapel Street/A6. Continue on Chapel Street.
Chapel Street739 m
Turn right onto Victoria Bridge Street.
Victoria Bridge Street125 m
Turn right onto Deansgate/A56.
Deansgate142 m
Turn right onto Blackfriars Street/A6.
Blackfriars Street2.4 km
Turn left onto A576/Great Cheetham Street West. Continue on A576.
A5761.1 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Littleton Road.
72 m
Exit the roundabout onto Littleton Road.
Littleton Road669 m
Turn left onto Ayrshire Road.
Ayrshire Road94 m
Turn right onto Ukraine Road.
Ukraine Road99 m
Turn right onto Northallerton Road.
Northallerton Road93 m
Turn right onto Littleton Road.
Littleton Road772 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A576/Cromwell Road.
3 m
Exit the roundabout onto A576/Cromwell Road. Continue on A576.
A5761.1 km
Turn right onto Great Clowes Street/A5066.
Great Clowes Street615 m
Turn left onto Broughton Lane.
Broughton Lane199 m
Turn right onto Milton Street.
Milton Street262 m
Turn left onto Girton Street.
Girton Street212 m
Turn left onto Edward Street.
Edward Street226 m
Turn left onto Broughton Lane.
Broughton Lane478 m
Turn left onto Great Clowes Street/A5066.
Great Clowes Street65 m
Turn left onto Kent Street.
Kent Street182 m
Turn left onto Milton Street.
Milton Street64 m
Turn right onto Broughton Lane.
Broughton Lane420 m
Move left onto Waterloo Road/B6180.
Waterloo Road513 m
Turn right onto Allison Street.
Allison Street149 m
Turn right onto Cheetwood Road.
Cheetwood Road170 m
Turn left onto Broughton Street.
Broughton Street105 m
Turn left onto Sherborne Street.
Sherborne Street405 m
Turn left onto A6010/Elizabeth Street.
A6010274 m
Turn left onto Waterloo Road/B6180.
Waterloo Road277 m
Turn left onto Allison Street.
Allison Street149 m
Turn left onto Cheetwood Road.
Cheetwood Road270 m
Turn left onto A6010/Elizabeth Street.
A6010156 m
Turn right onto Waterloo Road/B6180.
Waterloo Road398 m
Turn right onto Bellott Street.
Bellott Street239 m
Turn right onto Heywood Street.
Heywood Street462 m
Turn right onto Alderglen Road.
Alderglen Road197 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Cheetham Hill · Route 17 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.
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.
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 9.8 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.
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.
William Hill
Start near William Hill.
Shaandar
Continue to Shaandar.
Queens Road
Continue to Queens Road.
Saviour
Continue to Saviour.
Ecobrite
Continue to Ecobrite.
Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha
Continue to Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha.
Base Bar
Continue to Base Bar.
Yates
Continue to Yates.
Shudehill
Continue to Shudehill.
UCEN Manchester (City Campus)
Continue to UCEN Manchester (City Campus).
Salford Central
Continue to Salford Central.
Sacred Trinity Church
Continue to Sacred Trinity Church.
Black Friar
Continue to Black Friar.
Friars Primary School
Continue to Friars Primary School.
St Aidan
Continue to St Aidan.
Palatine
Continue to Palatine.
St Clement with St Matthias
Continue to St Clement with St Matthias.
Cheetwood Primary School
Continue to Cheetwood Primary School.
Jamia-Tul-Muntazir Manchester
Continue to Jamia-Tul-Muntazir Manchester.
Cheetham Park
Finish back near Cheetham Park, completing the loop.
2 roundabouts · 20 turns · 9 sets of lights
2 roundabouts · 18 turns · 12 sets of lights
1 roundabout · 14 turns · 11 sets of lights
1 roundabout · 18 turns · 11 sets of lights
This route is 27.0 km and takes about 45 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Cheetham Hill test centre, not an official DVSA route.