Near Erith test centre
Rated challenging from its real manoeuvre load, 11 roundabouts, 9 turns and 2 signalled junctions across 23 navigation steps.
This is an independent 26.2 km practice loop near Erith 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 Crabtree Manorway North, Lower Road, Bronze Age Way, Fraser Road and Northend Road and 1 more named junctions. 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, pubs, stations and shops, 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 Erith 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 82-step drive on real, named roads (about 26.2 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive east.
59 m
Turn right onto Crabtree Manorway North.
Crabtree Manorway North187 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Crabtree Manorway North.
25 m
Exit the roundabout onto Crabtree Manorway North.
Crabtree Manorway North181 m
Turn left.
99 m
Turn left.
568 m
Turn left.
318 m
Turn left onto Mulberry Way.
Mulberry Way257 m
Enter Crabtree Manorway North and take the 2nd exit onto Anderson Way.
Crabtree Manorway North27 m
Exit the roundabout onto Anderson Way.
Anderson Way211 m
Move left.
9 m
Move right onto Anderson Way.
Anderson Way26 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Picardy Manorway/B253.
44 m
Exit the roundabout onto Picardy Manorway/B253.
Picardy Manorway771 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Lower Road/B213.
7 m
Exit the roundabout onto Lower Road/B213.
Lower Road528 m
Turn right onto Battle Road.
Battle Road511 m
Turn right onto Pembroke Road.
Pembroke Road127 m
Turn right onto Pembroke Close.
Pembroke Close59 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Pembroke Close.
Pembroke Close59 m
Turn left onto Pembroke Road.
Pembroke Road127 m
Turn left onto Battle Road.
Battle Road511 m
Turn right onto Lower Road/B213.
Lower Road402 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Bronze Age Way/A2016.
45 m
Exit the roundabout onto Bronze Age Way/A2016.
Bronze Age Way1.1 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Bexley Road/A220.
92 m
Exit the roundabout onto Bexley Road/A220.
Bexley Road100 m
Move right onto Fraser Road/A206.
Fraser Road809 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Fraser Road/A206.
19 m
Exit the roundabout onto Fraser Road/A206. Continue on A206.
A206985 m
Turn left onto Brook Street.
Brook Street701 m
Turn left onto Carlton Road.
Carlton Road627 m
Turn left onto Bexley Road/A220.
Bexley Road693 m
Turn right onto Park Crescent Road.
Park Crescent Road184 m
Turn right onto Park Crescent.
Park Crescent412 m
Move left to stay on Park Crescent.
Park Crescent60 m
Move left onto Hind Crescent.
Hind Crescent291 m
Move left onto Avenue Road.
Avenue Road73 m
Turn right onto Ramsden Road.
Ramsden Road356 m
Turn left onto Colyers Lane.
Colyers Lane65 m
Turn right onto Colyers Close.
Colyers Close71 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Colyers Close.
Colyers Close71 m
Turn right onto Colyers Lane.
Colyers Lane72 m
Turn right onto Northumberland Way.
Northumberland Way577 m
Turn right onto Barnehurst Avenue.
Barnehurst Avenue70 m
Turn left onto Barnehurst Close.
Barnehurst Close96 m
Turn left to stay on Barnehurst Close.
Barnehurst Close82 m
Turn left to stay on Barnehurst Close.
Barnehurst Close96 m
Turn right onto Barnehurst Avenue.
Barnehurst Avenue594 m
Turn right onto Merewood Road.
Merewood Road604 m
Turn right onto Erith Road/A220.
Erith Road113 m
Turn right onto Windermere Road.
Windermere Road301 m
Turn right onto Grasmere Road.
Grasmere Road180 m
Turn left onto Merewood Road.
Merewood Road264 m
Turn left onto Eversley Avenue.
Eversley Avenue656 m
Turn left onto Hurstwood Avenue.
Hurstwood Avenue72 m
Turn right to stay on Hurstwood Avenue.
Hurstwood Avenue580 m
Turn right onto Colyers Lane.
Colyers Lane295 m
Turn right onto Northend Road/A206.
Northend Road755 m
Enter Thames Road and take the 5th exit onto Northend Road/A206.
Thames Road209 m
Exit the roundabout onto Northend Road/A206.
Northend Road1.1 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto South Road/A206.
36 m
Exit the roundabout onto South Road/A206. Continue on A206.
A206808 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Queens Road/A206.
100 m
Exit the roundabout onto Queens Road/A206.
Queens Road290 m
Turn left onto James Watt Way.
James Watt Way102 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 5th exit onto James Watt Way.
66 m
Exit the roundabout onto James Watt Way.
James Watt Way113 m
Turn right onto Queens Road/A206.
Queens Road288 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Bronze Age Way/A2016.
41 m
Exit the roundabout onto Bronze Age Way/A2016.
Bronze Age Way2.3 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Bronze Age Way/A2016.
125 m
Exit the roundabout onto Bronze Age Way/A2016.
Bronze Age Way1.1 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Lower Road/B213.
97 m
Exit the roundabout onto Lower Road/B213.
Lower Road938 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Picardy Manorway/B253.
37 m
Exit the roundabout onto Picardy Manorway/B253.
Picardy Manorway773 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Anderson Way.
48 m
Exit the roundabout onto Anderson Way.
Anderson Way251 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Crabtree Manorway North.
36 m
Exit the roundabout onto Crabtree Manorway North.
Crabtree Manorway North35 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Erith · Route 9 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.
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 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.
Crabtree Manorway North
Start near Crabtree Manorway North.
Lower Road
Continue to Lower Road, taking the junction with good observation.
Halfway House
Continue to Halfway House.
Bronze Age Way
Continue to Bronze Age Way, taking the junction with good observation.
Lower Road / Church Manorway
Continue to Lower Road / Church Manorway.
Erith
Continue to Erith.
Fraser Road
Continue to Fraser Road, taking the junction with good observation.
Tile Giant
Continue to Tile Giant.
Erith Fire Station
Continue to Erith Fire Station.
Northumberland Heath Medical Centre
Continue to Northumberland Heath Medical Centre.
Barnehurst Infant School
Continue to Barnehurst Infant School.
Bird and Barrel
Continue to Bird and Barrel.
Raymons
Continue to Raymons.
Afishionados
Continue to Afishionados.
Slade Green Superstore
Continue to Slade Green Superstore.
Northend Road
Continue to Northend Road, taking the junction with good observation.
Tesco Express
Continue to Tesco Express.
James Watt Way
Continue to James Watt Way, taking the junction with good observation.
McDonald's
Continue to McDonald's.
Guru Nanak Durbar Sikh Temple
Finish back near Guru Nanak Durbar Sikh Temple, completing the loop.
7 roundabouts · 19 turns
11 roundabouts · 10 turns · 2 sets of lights
9 roundabouts · 14 turns · 1 set of lights
13 roundabouts · 8 turns · 1 set of lights
This route is 26.2 km and takes about 35 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Erith test centre, not an official DVSA route.