Near Gateshead (Elswick) test centre
Rated challenging from its real manoeuvre load, 5 roundabouts, 17 turns and 5 signalled junctions across 24 navigation steps.
This is an independent 40.8 km practice route near Gateshead (Elswick) 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.
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 96-step drive on real, named roads (about 40.8 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 right onto William Armstrong Drive.
William Armstrong Drive121 m
Turn right onto Scotswood Road/A695.
Scotswood Road1.1 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Scotswood Road/A695.
23 m
Exit the roundabout onto Scotswood Road/A695.
Scotswood Road69 m
Keep right to stay on Scotswood Road/A695.
Scotswood Road54 m
Move right to stay on Scotswood Road/A695.
Scotswood Road11 m
Turn right onto St James' Boulevard/A189.
A1891.8 km
Take the exit.
263 m
Turn right onto A1114.
A111449 m
Turn left onto Derwentwater Road/A1114.
Derwentwater Road630 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit towards Metro Centre.
49 m
Exit the roundabout towards Metro Centre.
A11141.2 km
Turn right onto Railway Street.
Railway Street25 m
Turn left to stay on Railway Street.
Railway Street379 m
Turn right onto Wellington Road.
Wellington Road157 m
Turn left onto Dunston Road.
Dunston Road859 m
Turn left onto Ellison Road.
Ellison Road82 m
Turn left onto Gunn Street.
Gunn Street81 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Gunn Street.
Gunn Street81 m
Turn right onto Ellison Road.
Ellison Road82 m
Turn right onto Park Terrace.
Park Terrace308 m
Turn right to take the A1 ramp.
A1565 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 Road619 m
Turn right onto Park Road.
Park Road388 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 left onto West View.
West View185 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 Road236 m
Turn right.
58 m
Turn left onto Georges Road.
Georges Road17 m
Turn left onto Elswick Road/B1311. Continue on B1311.
B13111.2 km
Turn right onto Condercum Road/B1305.
Condercum Road103 m
Turn left onto Condercum Road Back.
Condercum Road Back25 m
Turn right.
83 m
Turn left onto Condercum Road/B1305.
Condercum Road460 m
Turn left onto West Road/A186.
West Road722 m
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.
West Road410 m
Turn right onto Pease Avenue.
Pease Avenue253 m
Turn left to stay on Pease Avenue.
Pease Avenue86 m
Turn right to stay on Pease Avenue.
Pease Avenue206 m
Turn left onto West Road/A186.
West Road597 m
Turn left onto Coldstream Road.
Coldstream Road148 m
Turn right onto Countess Drive.
Countess Drive372 m
Turn left onto Thorntree Drive.
Thorntree Drive306 m
Turn left onto Whickham View/B1311.
Whickham View426 m
Turn right onto Broadmead Way.
Broadmead Way685 m
Turn right onto Denton Road/A191.
Denton Road926 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Denton Road/A191.
61 m
Exit the roundabout onto Denton Road/A191.
Denton Road1.3 km
Turn right onto Denton Road/A191. Continue on A191.
A191182 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit towards A695/City Centre/Blaydon.
4 m
Exit the roundabout towards A695/City Centre/Blaydon.
A191329 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Scotswood Road/A695.
49 m
Exit the roundabout onto Scotswood Road/A695.
Scotswood Road4.1 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Scotswood Road/A695.
66 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 14 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.
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 5.0 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.
Elswick Parish Church St Stephens & St Pauls
Continue to Elswick Parish Church St Stephens & St Pauls.
Bobby’s
Continue to Bobby’s.
Gateshead Harley Davidson
Continue to Gateshead Harley Davidson.
Tudor Rose
Continue to Tudor Rose.
Kamo
Continue to Kamo.
Newcastle Motorcycles - Honda
Continue to Newcastle Motorcycles - Honda.
Ashfield Nursery School
Continue to Ashfield Nursery School.
Paradise A Lounge
Continue to Paradise A Lounge.
Mountain of Fire & Miracles Ministries
Continue to Mountain of Fire & Miracles Ministries.
St James Parish Church
Continue to St James Parish Church.
Newcastle City Learning Centre
Continue to Newcastle City Learning Centre.
Fox and Hounds
Continue to Fox and Hounds.
Broadmead Way Evangelical Church
Continue to Broadmead Way Evangelical Church.
Denton Dene
Continue to Denton Dene.
Screwfix
Continue to Screwfix.
Richard Hardie - Alfa
Continue to Richard Hardie - Alfa.
Arnold Clark - Seat
Finish back near Arnold Clark - Seat, 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 40.8 km and takes about 35 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Gateshead (Elswick) test centre, not an official DVSA route.