Near Edinburgh (Currie) test centre
Rated challenging from its real manoeuvre load, 8 roundabouts, 15 turns and 2 signalled junctions across 25 navigation steps.
This is an independent 41.1 km practice loop near Edinburgh (Currie) test centre, taking roughly 35 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 Clovenstone Roundabout and Riccarton Mains 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, schools 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 Edinburgh (Currie) 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 92-step drive on real, named roads (about 41.1 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive east on Bryce Road.
Bryce Road398 m
Turn left onto Lanark Road West/A70. Continue on A70.
A703.0 km
Turn right onto Hailes Grove.
Hailes Grove95 m
Turn left onto Hailes Terrace.
Hailes Terrace166 m
Turn left onto Hailes Avenue.
Hailes Avenue173 m
Turn left onto Lanark Road/A70.
Lanark Road783 m
Turn right onto Wester Hailes Road/B701.
Wester Hailes Road516 m
Enter Clovenstone Roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Wester Hailes Road/B701.
Clovenstone Roundabout78 m
Exit the roundabout onto Wester Hailes Road/B701.
Wester Hailes Road814 m
Turn left onto Westburn Avenue.
Westburn Avenue527 m
Turn right onto Baberton Mains Cottages.
Baberton Mains Cottages282 m
Move right onto Baberton Road.
Baberton Road604 m
Turn left to stay on Baberton Road.
Baberton Road44 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Baberton Road.
Baberton Road44 m
Turn right to stay on Baberton Road.
Baberton Road604 m
Move left onto Baberton Mains Cottages.
Baberton Mains Cottages282 m
Turn left onto Baberton Mains Hill.
Baberton Mains Hill537 m
Turn right onto Wester Hailes Road/B701.
Wester Hailes Road809 m
Enter Clovenstone Roundabout and take the 2nd exit towards City Centre/Lanark/Colinton/Currie.
Clovenstone Roundabout71 m
Exit the roundabout towards City Centre/Lanark/Colinton/Currie.
Wester Hailes Road524 m
Turn right onto Lanark Road/A70.
Lanark Road848 m
Turn right onto Woodhall Drive.
Woodhall Drive194 m
Turn right onto Woodhall Terrace.
Woodhall Terrace466 m
Turn left onto Lanark Road/A70.
Lanark Road476 m
Turn left onto Wester Hailes Road/B701.
Wester Hailes Road516 m
Enter Clovenstone Roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Wester Hailes Road/B701.
Clovenstone Roundabout78 m
Exit the roundabout onto Wester Hailes Road/B701.
Wester Hailes Road814 m
Turn left onto Westburn Avenue.
Westburn Avenue527 m
Turn right onto Baberton Mains Cottages.
Baberton Mains Cottages282 m
Move right onto Baberton Road.
Baberton Road604 m
Turn left to stay on Baberton Road.
Baberton Road44 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Baberton Road.
Baberton Road44 m
Turn right to stay on Baberton Road.
Baberton Road604 m
Move left onto Baberton Mains Cottages.
Baberton Mains Cottages282 m
Turn left onto Baberton Mains Hill.
Baberton Mains Hill537 m
Turn right onto Wester Hailes Road/B701.
Wester Hailes Road809 m
Enter Clovenstone Roundabout and take the 2nd exit towards City Centre.
Clovenstone Roundabout71 m
Exit the roundabout towards City Centre.
Wester Hailes Road524 m
Turn left towards City Centre.
Lanark Road657 m
Turn right onto Hailes Grove.
Hailes Grove95 m
Turn left onto Hailes Terrace.
Hailes Terrace166 m
Turn left onto Hailes Avenue.
Hailes Avenue173 m
Turn left onto Lanark Road/A70. Continue on A70.
A703.6 km
Turn right onto Curriehill Road.
Curriehill Road93 m
Turn left onto Pentland View.
Pentland View276 m
Turn right onto Pentland Avenue.
Pentland Avenue85 m
Turn right onto Dolphin Gardens East.
Dolphin Gardens East194 m
Turn right onto Pentland Place.
Pentland Place62 m
Turn left onto Pentland View.
Pentland View75 m
Turn right onto Curriehill Road.
Curriehill Road93 m
Turn left onto Lanark Road West/A70. Continue on A70.
A703.1 km
Turn right onto Spylaw Bank Road.
Spylaw Bank Road110 m
Move right onto Spylaw Avenue.
Spylaw Avenue111 m
Turn right onto Spylaw Park.
Spylaw Park219 m
Turn right towards City Centre/Slateford/Dalry.
Lanark Road801 m
Turn left onto Kingsknowe Road South.
Kingsknowe Road South666 m
Turn left onto Kingsknowe Place.
Kingsknowe Place40 m
Turn left onto Kingsknowe Court.
Kingsknowe Court18 m
Turn left to stay on Kingsknowe Court.
Kingsknowe Court27 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Kingsknowe Court.
Kingsknowe Court27 m
Turn right to stay on Kingsknowe Court.
Kingsknowe Court18 m
Turn right onto Kingsknowe Place.
Kingsknowe Place40 m
Turn right onto Kingsknowe Road North.
Kingsknowe Road North666 m
Turn right onto Lanark Road/A70.
Lanark Road919 m
Turn right onto Wester Hailes Road/B701.
Wester Hailes Road516 m
Enter Clovenstone Roundabout and take the 4th exit towards Clovenstone/Hailesland.
Clovenstone Roundabout116 m
Exit the roundabout towards Clovenstone/Hailesland.
Clovenstone Road824 m
Turn right onto Hailesland Road.
Hailesland Road637 m
Turn right onto Murrayburn Road.
Murrayburn Road865 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Longstone Road.
72 m
Exit the roundabout onto Longstone Road.
Longstone Road172 m
Turn left onto Longstone Crescent.
Longstone Crescent233 m
Turn right onto Longstone Road.
Longstone Road67 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Murrayburn Road.
22 m
Exit the roundabout onto Murrayburn Road.
Murrayburn Road1.8 km
Turn right onto Wester Hailes Road/B701.
Wester Hailes Road299 m
Turn left onto Calder Drive.
Calder Drive131 m
Turn right onto Calder Gardens.
Calder Gardens69 m
Turn left onto Calder Place.
Calder Place246 m
Move left onto Calder Drive.
Calder Drive196 m
Turn left to stay on Calder Drive.
Calder Drive255 m
Turn left onto Wester Hailes Road/B701.
Wester Hailes Road386 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Calder Road/A71.
14 m
Exit the roundabout onto Calder Road/A71.
Calder Road789 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 6th exit towards Heriot-Watt University.
481 m
Exit the roundabout towards Heriot-Watt University.
Calder Road471 m
Keep left towards Heriot-Watt University.
Riccarton Mains Road321 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit towards Heriot-Watt University/Currie/Balerno.
28 m
Exit the roundabout towards Heriot-Watt University/Currie/Balerno.
Riccarton Mains Road305 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit towards Currie.
91 m
Exit the roundabout towards Currie.
Riccarton Mains Road1.2 km
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Edinburgh (Currie) · Route 5 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.
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
Watch your lane discipline and signalling at Clovenstone Roundabout. Get into the correct lane early and check your exit mirror before leaving.
Changing speed limits
Limits change across this route (20, 30, 40, 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.
Juniper Green Parish Church
Start near Juniper Green Parish Church.
Kinleith Mill
Continue to Kinleith Mill.
Cranley Nursery
Continue to Cranley Nursery.
Tanners
Continue to Tanners.
Clovenstone Roundabout
Continue to Clovenstone Roundabout, taking the junction with good observation.
Scotmid
Continue to Scotmid.
ODEON MULTIPLEX CINEMA
Continue to ODEON MULTIPLEX CINEMA.
Juniper Flowers
Continue to Juniper Flowers.
Railway Barbers
Continue to Railway Barbers.
Gift Stop
Continue to Gift Stop.
Woodhall Arms
Continue to Woodhall Arms.
Our Lady, Mother Of The Church
Continue to Our Lady, Mother Of The Church.
Pentland View Park
Continue to Pentland View Park.
Riccarton Inn
Continue to Riccarton Inn.
Kingsknowe
Continue to Kingsknowe.
New Kingsknowe
Continue to New Kingsknowe.
Holy Trinity
Continue to Holy Trinity.
Wester Hailes Baptist Church
Continue to Wester Hailes Baptist Church.
Cars4You
Continue to Cars4You.
Riccarton Mains Road
Finish back near Riccarton Mains Road, completing the loop.
4 roundabouts · 16 turns · 4 sets of lights
7 roundabouts · 10 turns · 2 sets of lights
4 roundabouts · 14 turns · 2 sets of lights
7 roundabouts · 12 turns · 1 set of lights
This route is 41.1 km and takes about 35 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Edinburgh (Currie) test centre, not an official DVSA route.