Near Edinburgh (Currie) test centre
Rated moderate from its real manoeuvre load, 6 roundabouts, 12 turns and 3 signalled junctions across 22 navigation steps.
This is an independent 28.7 km practice loop near Edinburgh (Currie) test centre, taking roughly 30 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 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, 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 named junctions, stations, shops and churches, 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 80-step drive on real, named roads (about 29.3 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 Road308 m
Turn right onto Easter Currie Terrace.
Easter Currie Terrace157 m
Turn right onto Easter Currie Crescent.
Easter Currie Crescent185 m
Turn right onto Riccarton Mains Road.
Riccarton Mains Road141 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Riccarton Avenue.
26 m
Exit the roundabout onto Riccarton Avenue.
Riccarton Avenue250 m
Turn right onto Weaver's Knowe Crescent.
Weaver's Knowe Crescent479 m
Turn left onto Riccarton Mains Road.
Riccarton Mains Road426 m
Keep right to stay on Riccarton Mains Road.
Riccarton Mains Road838 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit towards Edinburgh/City Bypass.
90 m
Exit the roundabout towards Edinburgh/City Bypass.
Riccarton Mains Road183 m
Keep left to stay on Riccarton Mains Road.
Riccarton Mains Road123 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit towards Edinburgh/City Bypass/M8.
31 m
Exit the roundabout towards Edinburgh/City Bypass/M8.
Riccarton Mains Road165 m
Keep right to stay on Riccarton Mains Road towards Edinburgh/City Bypass/M8.
Riccarton Mains Road78 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit towards Edinburgh/City Bypass/M8.
149 m
Exit the roundabout towards Edinburgh/City Bypass/M8.
Calder Road524 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit towards City Centre.
120 m
Exit the roundabout towards City Centre.
Calder Road802 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit towards Lanark.
99 m
Exit the roundabout towards Lanark.
Wester Hailes Road389 m
Turn right onto Calder Drive.
Calder Drive142 m
Turn right onto Calder Gardens.
Calder Gardens69 m
Turn left onto Calder Place.
Calder Place32 m
Keep right to stay on Calder Place.
Calder Place213 m
Move left onto Calder Drive.
Calder Drive196 m
Turn right onto Calder Grove.
Calder Grove52 m
Turn left onto Murrayburn Drive.
Murrayburn Drive655 m
Turn left onto Murrayburn Road.
Murrayburn Road1.4 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Longstone Road.
72 m
Exit the roundabout onto Longstone Road.
Longstone Road396 m
Keep left to stay on Longstone Road.
Longstone Road669 m
Turn left onto Lanark Road/A70. Continue on A70.
A70410 m
Keep right to take Slateford Road/A70.
Slateford Road1.7 km
Keep straight to stay on Slateford Road/A70.
Slateford Road130 m
Keep right to take Angle Park Terrace.
Angle Park Terrace339 m
Keep left to take West Approach Road.
West Approach Road783 m
Turn left onto Morrison Link.
Morrison Link190 m
Keep right to stay on Morrison Link.
Morrison Link30 m
Turn right onto Morrison Street/B700.
Morrison Street871 m
Keep left to stay on West Port.
West Port202 m
Turn left onto Grassmarket.
Grassmarket192 m
Turn left onto Tanners Close.
Tanners Close48 m
Turn left onto King's Stables Lane.
King's Stables Lane116 m
Turn left onto Lady Wynd.
Lady Wynd49 m
Turn right onto King's Stables Road.
King's Stables Road94 m
Turn right onto West Port.
West Port308 m
Move left onto East Fountainbridge.
East Fountainbridge431 m
Keep left to take Lochrin Square.
Lochrin Square449 m
Turn right onto Drysdale Road.
Drysdale Road151 m
Turn left onto West Approach Road.
West Approach Road342 m
Keep right to stay on West Approach Road.
West Approach Road120 m
Keep left to stay on West Approach Road.
West Approach Road179 m
Turn left onto Angle Park Terrace.
Angle Park Terrace719 m
Keep left to take Slateford Road/A70.
Slateford Road1.5 km
Turn left onto Craiglockhart Avenue.
Craiglockhart Avenue541 m
Turn right onto Craiglockhart Road.
Craiglockhart Road115 m
Keep right to stay on Craiglockhart Road.
Craiglockhart Road354 m
Turn right onto Craiglockhart Park.
Craiglockhart Park423 m
Turn right onto Craiglockhart Drive South.
Craiglockhart Drive South389 m
Turn right onto Craiglockhart Avenue.
Craiglockhart Avenue107 m
Turn right onto Craiglockhart Road.
Craiglockhart Road115 m
Keep right to stay on Craiglockhart Road.
Craiglockhart Road354 m
Turn right onto Craiglockhart Park.
Craiglockhart Park160 m
Turn right onto Craiglockhart Quadrant.
Craiglockhart Quadrant238 m
Turn right onto Craiglockhart Road.
Craiglockhart Road275 m
Turn right onto Elliot Park.
Elliot Park178 m
Turn left onto Elliot Road.
Elliot Road256 m
Turn right onto Colinton Road.
Colinton Road2.1 km
Turn right towards City Centre/Slateford/Dalry.
Lanark Road176 m
Keep right to stay on Lanark Road/A70.
Lanark Road480 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.
Lanark Road906 m
Keep right to stay on A70.
A702.2 km
Turn right onto Bryce Road.
Bryce Road319 m
Turn right onto Muir Wood Road.
Muir Wood Road133 m
Turn left onto Corslet Road.
Corslet Road131 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Edinburgh (Currie) · Route 7 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.
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 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.
Riccarton Mains Road
Start near Riccarton Mains Road.
Hermiston Park and Ride
Continue to Hermiston Park and Ride.
Topps Tiles
Continue to Topps Tiles.
St Nicholas Parish Church
Continue to St Nicholas Parish Church.
Campbell & Sons
Continue to Campbell & Sons.
Kingdom Hall
Continue to Kingdom Hall.
Slateford
Continue to Slateford.
St Cuthberts Church
Continue to St Cuthberts Church.
Malones
Continue to Malones.
Monboddo
Continue to Monboddo.
Lochrin Rooftop Bar
Continue to Lochrin Rooftop Bar.
St Michael's Parish church
Continue to St Michael's Parish church.
Londis
Continue to Londis.
Craiglockhart Parish Church
Continue to Craiglockhart Parish Church.
Great Smoke Barber
Continue to Great Smoke Barber.
St Cuthbert's
Continue to St Cuthbert's.
Redeemer Church
Continue to Redeemer Church.
Juniper Green Parish Church
Continue to Juniper Green Parish Church.
Kinleith Mill
Continue to Kinleith Mill.
Clearview Opticians
Finish back near Clearview Opticians, 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 28.7 km and takes about 30 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Edinburgh (Currie) test centre, not an official DVSA route.