Near Gateshead (Elswick) test centre
Rated demanding from its real manoeuvre load, 8 roundabouts, 17 turns and 6 signalled junctions across 30 navigation steps.
This is an independent 37.6 km practice route near Gateshead (Elswick) 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, national-speed roads, 20 mph zones, changing speed limits, residential manoeuvres, busy a-roads 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, parks, shops 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 Gateshead (Elswick) 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 94-step drive on real, named roads (about 37.6 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive northeast.
14 m
Turn right.
15 m
Turn left onto Waterside Drive.
Waterside Drive29 m
Turn right to stay on Waterside Drive.
Waterside Drive77 m
Turn left onto Dunston Road.
Dunston Road917 m
Take the A1 exit.
A1577 m
Take exit 69 onto A184 towards Central Newcastle/Central Gateshead.
A1842.0 km
Keep right to take A189.
A1891.2 km
Move left onto Scotswood Road/A695.
Scotswood Road136 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Scotswood Road/A695.
22 m
Exit the roundabout onto Scotswood Road/A695.
Scotswood Road386 m
Turn left onto Dunn Street.
Dunn Street64 m
Turn right onto Penn Street.
Penn Street760 m
Turn left onto Amethyst Road.
Amethyst Road351 m
Turn right.
37 m
Turn right.
88 m
Turn left onto Amethyst Road.
Amethyst Road299 m
Turn left onto Monarch Road.
Monarch Road389 m
Turn left onto William Armstrong Drive.
William Armstrong Drive973 m
Turn right onto Scotswood Road/A695.
Scotswood Road2.0 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Scotswood Road/A695.
66 m
Exit the roundabout onto Scotswood Road/A695.
Scotswood Road619 m
Turn right onto Park Road.
Park Road388 m
Turn left onto Westmorland Road.
Westmorland Road319 m
Turn left onto Brunel Terrace.
Brunel Terrace175 m
Turn left onto Clumber Street.
Clumber Street69 m
Turn right to stay on Clumber Street.
Clumber Street164 m
Move left onto Scotswood Road/A695.
Scotswood Road272 m
Turn left onto Park Road.
Park Road375 m
Turn left onto Westmorland Road.
Westmorland Road319 m
Turn left onto Brunel Terrace.
Brunel Terrace175 m
Turn left onto Clumber Street.
Clumber Street69 m
Turn right to stay on Clumber Street.
Clumber Street164 m
Move left onto Scotswood Road/A695.
Scotswood Road272 m
Turn left onto Park Road.
Park Road375 m
Turn right onto Westmorland Road.
Westmorland Road443 m
Turn left onto Rye Hill.
Rye Hill296 m
Turn left onto Elswick Road/B1311.
Elswick Road1.0 km
Turn left onto West View.
West View289 m
Turn left.
43 m
Turn left onto James Street.
James Street191 m
Turn left onto Chesterfield Road.
Chesterfield Road60 m
Turn right onto West View.
West View105 m
Turn right onto Elswick Road/B1311.
Elswick Road355 m
Turn left onto Mill Lane.
Mill Lane226 m
Move right onto Sceptre Street.
Sceptre Street72 m
Make a left U-turn to stay on Sceptre Street.
Sceptre Street291 m
Turn left onto Bentinck Road.
Bentinck Road209 m
Turn right onto Clifton Road.
Clifton Road203 m
Turn right onto Grainger Park Road.
Grainger Park Road105 m
Turn left onto Clovelly Avenue.
Clovelly Avenue304 m
Turn left onto Normount Road.
Normount Road76 m
Turn left onto Clifton Road.
Clifton Road500 m
Turn left onto Bentinck Road.
Bentinck Road500 m
Turn left onto Westgate Road/A186. Continue on A186.
A1861.7 km
Turn right onto Two Ball Lonnen/B1305.
Two Ball Lonnen206 m
Turn left onto Benwell Hill Road.
Benwell Hill Road473 m
Move left onto Saint Cuthbert's Road.
Saint Cuthbert's Road63 m
Turn left onto West Road/A186. Continue on A186.
A1861.8 km
Turn left onto Wingrove Road.
Wingrove Road205 m
Turn right onto Agricola Road.
Agricola Road67 m
Turn left onto Wingrove Avenue.
Wingrove Avenue144 m
Turn left onto Hadrian Road.
Hadrian Road273 m
Turn right onto Oliver Avenue.
Oliver Avenue120 m
Turn left onto Severus Road.
Severus Road63 m
Turn left onto Hall Avenue.
Hall Avenue103 m
Turn right onto Hadrian Road.
Hadrian Road112 m
Turn left onto Middleton Avenue.
Middleton Avenue284 m
Turn left.
74 m
Turn left onto Gowland Avenue.
Gowland Avenue269 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Gowland Avenue.
Gowland Avenue310 m
Turn right onto West Road/A186.
West Road845 m
Turn right onto Grange Road.
Grange Road454 m
Turn right onto Cedar Road.
Cedar Road353 m
Turn right onto Palm Avenue.
Palm Avenue193 m
Turn right onto Hadrian Road.
Hadrian Road146 m
Move right onto Linden Avenue.
Linden Avenue475 m
Turn left onto Newminster Road.
Newminster Road247 m
Turn right onto Cedar Road.
Cedar Road110 m
Turn left onto Two Ball Lonnen/B1305.
Two Ball Lonnen177 m
Turn right onto Benwell Hill Road.
Benwell Hill Road473 m
Move left onto Saint Cuthbert's Road.
Saint Cuthbert's Road63 m
Turn left onto West Road/A186. Continue on A186.
A1863.5 km
Turn right onto St James' Boulevard/A189.
St James' Boulevard489 m
Keep right to take Scotswood Road/A695.
Scotswood Road72 m
Turn right to stay on Scotswood Road/A695.
Scotswood Road117 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Scotswood Road/A695.
22 m
Exit the roundabout onto Scotswood Road/A695.
Scotswood Road1.1 km
Turn left onto William Armstrong Drive.
William Armstrong Drive1.1 km
Turn right onto Scotswood Road/A695.
Scotswood Road912 m
Turn right onto William Armstrong Drive.
William Armstrong Drive121 m
Turn left onto Monarch Road.
Monarch Road389 m
Turn right onto Amethyst Road.
Amethyst Road351 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Gateshead (Elswick) · Route 13 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 2.2 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.
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.
Dunston Christian Spiritualist Church
Start near Dunston Christian Spiritualist Church.
Redheugh Bridge Park
Continue to Redheugh Bridge Park.
Wed4Less
Continue to Wed4Less.
Riverside News
Continue to Riverside News.
Richard Hardie - Alfa
Continue to Richard Hardie - Alfa.
Elswick Parish Church St Stephens & St Pauls
Continue to Elswick Parish Church St Stephens & St Pauls.
Newcastle Motorcycles - Honda
Continue to Newcastle Motorcycles - Honda.
St Michael's Church
Continue to St Michael's Church.
Metropolitan Bar
Continue to Metropolitan Bar.
Ashfield Nursery School
Continue to Ashfield Nursery School.
Newcastle Tawheed Islamic Centre
Continue to Newcastle Tawheed Islamic Centre.
Kotku Mosque
Continue to Kotku Mosque.
Church of the Venerable Bede
Continue to Church of the Venerable Bede.
Hindu Temple
Continue to Hindu Temple.
Fox and Hounds
Continue to Fox and Hounds.
Westfield Social Club
Continue to Westfield Social Club.
Robert Stewart Memorial
Continue to Robert Stewart Memorial.
Westgate Baptist Church
Continue to Westgate Baptist Church.
Newcastle Coach Station
Continue to Newcastle Coach Station.
Bobby’s
Finish back near Bobby’s, completing the loop.
5 roundabouts · 25 turns · 6 sets of lights
6 roundabouts · 22 turns · 8 sets of lights
9 roundabouts · 23 turns · 8 sets of lights
5 roundabouts · 20 turns · 7 sets of lights
This route is 37.6 km and takes about 45 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Gateshead (Elswick) test centre, not an official DVSA route.