Near Chorley test centre
Rated easy from its real manoeuvre load, 23 turns across 30 navigation steps.
This is an independent 25.1 km practice loop near Chorley test centre, taking roughly 40 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 Ackhurst 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, national-speed roads, 20 mph zones, changing speed limits, 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 churches, pubs, shops and schools, 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 Chorley 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 84-step drive on real, named roads (about 25.0 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive south.
12 m
Turn left onto Rossall Road.
Rossall Road10 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Rossall Road.
Rossall Road39 m
Turn left onto Eaves Lane/B6228. Continue on B6228.
B6228787 m
Turn left onto Worthy Street.
Worthy Street251 m
Turn left onto Brooke Street.
Brooke Street239 m
Turn left to stay on Brooke Street.
Brooke Street12 m
Turn left onto Eaves Lane.
Eaves Lane319 m
Turn left onto Lyons Lane/B6228.
Lyons Lane580 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Lyons Lane South/A6.
12 m
Exit the roundabout onto Lyons Lane South/A6.
Lyons Lane South125 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Lyons Lane South/A6.
21 m
Exit the roundabout onto Lyons Lane South/A6.
Lyons Lane South186 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Bolton Street/A6.
23 m
Exit the roundabout onto Bolton Street/A6. Continue on A6.
A6856 m
Turn right onto Carr Lane.
Carr Lane656 m
Turn right onto Lighthurst Lane.
Lighthurst Lane385 m
Move left onto Sandgate.
Sandgate63 m
Turn right onto Pilling Lane.
Pilling Lane14 m
Turn left onto Harrison Road.
Harrison Road327 m
Turn right onto Brindle Street.
Brindle Street234 m
Turn right onto Duke Street.
Duke Street275 m
Turn left onto Bolton Street.
Bolton Street312 m
Turn left onto Pall Mall/B5251.
Pall Mall694 m
Turn right onto Maud Street.
Maud Street141 m
Turn left onto Walletts Road.
Walletts Road105 m
Turn right onto Tootell Street.
Tootell Street545 m
Turn right onto Isleworth Drive.
Isleworth Drive185 m
Turn left onto Sandridge Avenue.
Sandridge Avenue192 m
Turn left onto Walgarth Drive.
Walgarth Drive72 m
Turn left onto Crawford Avenue.
Crawford Avenue217 m
Turn left onto Isleworth Drive.
Isleworth Drive85 m
Turn left onto Sandridge Avenue.
Sandridge Avenue192 m
Turn left onto Walgarth Drive.
Walgarth Drive478 m
Turn right onto Collingwood Road.
Collingwood Road197 m
Turn right onto Stansted Road.
Stansted Road178 m
Move left onto Copperwood Way.
Copperwood Way119 m
Enter Ackhurst Road and take the 3rd exit onto Ackhurst Road/B5252.
Ackhurst Road61 m
Exit the roundabout onto Ackhurst Road/B5252. Continue on B5252.
B5252386 m
Turn left onto Foxhole Road.
Foxhole Road41 m
Turn right.
45 m
Turn left.
197 m
Turn left.
11 m
Turn right.
30 m
Turn left onto Foxhole Road/B5252. Continue on Foxhole Road.
Foxhole Road404 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Balshaw Lane/A581.
27 m
Exit the roundabout onto Balshaw Lane/A581.
Balshaw Lane1.0 km
Turn right onto Wigan Road/A49.
Wigan Road1.5 km
Turn left onto Shawbrook Close.
Shawbrook Close186 m
Turn left to stay on Shawbrook Close.
Shawbrook Close467 m
Turn left onto Cedar Avenue.
Cedar Avenue312 m
Turn left onto Runshaw Lane.
Runshaw Lane1.1 km
Turn left onto Central Avenue.
Central Avenue544 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Central Avenue.
18 m
Exit the roundabout onto Central Avenue.
Central Avenue452 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Central Avenue.
26 m
Exit the roundabout onto Central Avenue.
Central Avenue385 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Central Avenue.
24 m
Exit the roundabout onto Central Avenue.
Central Avenue244 m
Turn right onto Dawson Lane/B5248.
Dawson Lane618 m
Turn right to stay on Dawson Lane/B5248.
Dawson Lane1.6 km
Turn left onto Preston Road/A6.
Preston Road592 m
Turn right onto Cow Well Lane.
Cow Well Lane42 m
Move right to stay on Cow Well Lane.
Cow Well Lane87 m
Make a left U-turn at Cow Well Lane to stay on Cow Well Lane.
Cow Well Lane139 m
Turn left onto Preston Road/A6.
Preston Road1.4 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Preston Road/A6.
28 m
Exit the roundabout onto Preston Road/A6.
Preston Road1.1 km
Enter Preston Road Roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Preston Road/A6.
Preston Road Roundabout80 m
Exit the roundabout onto Preston Road/A6.
Preston Road183 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Preston Road/A6.
6 m
Exit the roundabout onto Preston Road/A6. Continue on A6.
A6731 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Preston Street/A6.
22 m
Exit the roundabout onto Preston Street/A6.
Preston Street29 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Harpers Lane/B6229.
12 m
Exit the roundabout onto Harpers Lane/B6229.
Harpers Lane627 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Eaves Lane/B6228.
32 m
Exit the roundabout onto Eaves Lane/B6228.
Eaves Lane704 m
Turn right onto Mossfield Road.
Mossfield Road29 m
Turn right.
43 m
Turn right onto Greenfield Road.
Greenfield Road31 m
Turn left onto Eaves Lane/B6228.
Eaves Lane194 m
Turn right onto Rossall Road.
Rossall Road39 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Chorley · Route 1 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.
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.
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.
St James' Church
Start near St James' Church.
Prince of Wales
Continue to Prince of Wales.
Gourmet Takeaway Chorley
Continue to Gourmet Takeaway Chorley.
St George's Church of England Primary School
Continue to St George's Church of England Primary School.
Duke Street Primary School
Continue to Duke Street Primary School.
Living Waters Church
Continue to Living Waters Church.
Handley's Bakery
Continue to Handley's Bakery.
Little Lantern
Continue to Little Lantern.
Ackhurst Road
Continue to Ackhurst Road, taking the junction with good observation.
Field Fare
Continue to Field Fare.
Talbot
Continue to Talbot.
Euxton Parish Church
Continue to Euxton Parish Church.
Euxton Tiles
Continue to Euxton Tiles.
Naseeb
Continue to Naseeb.
Bay Horse
Continue to Bay Horse.
John the Evangelist, Whittle-le-Woods
Continue to John the Evangelist, Whittle-le-Woods.
Waterloo Lodge
Continue to Waterloo Lodge.
Hartwood Hall
Continue to Hartwood Hall.
Nature Trail Nursery Park Road
Continue to Nature Trail Nursery Park Road.
St Joseph
Finish back near St Joseph, completing the loop.
18 turns
23 turns
14 turns · 2 sets of lights
13 turns · 2 sets of lights
This route is 25.1 km and takes about 40 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Chorley test centre, not an official DVSA route.