Near Gateshead test centre
Rated challenging from its real manoeuvre load, 9 roundabouts, 18 turns and 3 signalled junctions across 31 navigation steps.
This is an independent 63.2 km practice loop near Gateshead 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.
Along the way you'll meet Fawdon Interchange, Great Parkway and North Park. 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, dual-carriageway joins, national-speed roads, 20 mph zones, changing speed limits, residential manoeuvres, busy a-roads and independent driving. 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 shops, named junctions, churches and parks, 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 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 63.2 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 Road1.0 km
Turn right to take the A1 ramp.
A112.3 km
Take exit 79 onto A1056/(B1318) towards Wide Open/Killingworth/Gosforth/Great Park.
445 m
Move left onto Great Parkway.
Great Parkway509 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Great Parkway.
50 m
Exit the roundabout onto Great Parkway.
Great Parkway456 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto North Park.
83 m
Exit the roundabout onto North Park.
North Park184 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto North Park.
18 m
Exit the roundabout onto North Park.
North Park179 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Great Parkway.
11 m
Exit the roundabout onto Great Parkway.
Great Parkway448 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Great Parkway.
49 m
Exit the roundabout onto Great Parkway.
Great Parkway672 m
Enter Gosforth Park Interchange and take the 5th exit.
Gosforth Park Interchange293 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1/E 15.
A19.6 km
Take exit 73 onto A694 towards Consett/Whickham/Swalwell.
296 m
Keep left to take A694 towards Blaydon.
154 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A694.
25 m
Exit the roundabout onto A694.
A694336 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit towards A694/Gateshead.
133 m
Exit the roundabout towards A694/Gateshead.
A694341 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit.
47 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1/E 15.
A13.4 km
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 Road4.1 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Scotswood Road/A191.
72 m
Exit the roundabout onto Scotswood Road/A191.
Scotswood Road253 m
Keep right to stay on A191.
A19189 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit towards A191/Benwell.
101 m
Exit the roundabout towards A191/Benwell.
A191199 m
Turn left onto Denton Road/A191.
Denton Road1.3 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Denton Road/A191.
29 m
Exit the roundabout onto Denton Road/A191.
Denton Road61 m
Turn right onto Earl's Drive.
Earl's Drive806 m
Turn right onto Gretna Road.
Gretna Road427 m
Turn right onto Ferguson's Lane.
Ferguson's Lane504 m
Turn left onto Whickham View/B1311. Continue on B1311.
B13111.2 km
Turn right onto Hodgkin Park Road.
Hodgkin Park Road374 m
Turn left onto Armstrong Road.
Armstrong Road139 m
Turn right onto South Benwell Road.
South Benwell Road288 m
Turn right onto Whitehouse Road.
Whitehouse Road709 m
Turn right onto Chester Pike.
Chester Pike628 m
Turn right onto Armstrong Road.
Armstrong Road540 m
Turn right onto Atkinson Road/B1305. Continue on B1305.
B1305387 m
Turn left onto Whitehouse Road/B1305.
Whitehouse Road149 m
Turn left onto Scotswood Road/A695.
Scotswood Road2.5 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Scotswood Road/A695.
66 m
Exit the roundabout onto Scotswood Road/A695.
Scotswood Road4.0 km
Turn left onto Scotswood Bridge/A695.
Scotswood Bridge326 m
Keep left to take A694.
Derwenthaugh Road615 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Riverside Way/A1114.
17 m
Exit the roundabout onto Riverside Way/A1114.
Riverside Way72 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Riverside Way/A1114.
46 m
Exit the roundabout onto Riverside Way/A1114.
Riverside Way500 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Riverside Way/A1114.
3 m
Exit the roundabout onto Riverside Way/A1114. Continue on A1114.
A1114769 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A1114.
36 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1114.
A11141.0 km
Turn right onto St Omers Road.
St Omers Road295 m
Turn right.
568 m
Turn right onto Cross Lane.
Cross Lane201 m
Turn left to stay on Cross Lane.
Cross Lane145 m
Turn right onto Scotswood View.
Scotswood View251 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Scotswood View.
43 m
Exit the roundabout onto Scotswood View.
Scotswood View167 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Scotswood View.
42 m
Exit the roundabout onto Scotswood View.
Scotswood View338 m
Keep left at the fork.
104 m
Make a sharp right onto Hollinside Road.
Hollinside Road43 m
Turn right onto Scotswood View.
Scotswood View425 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Scotswood View.
43 m
Exit the roundabout onto Scotswood View.
Scotswood View167 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Scotswood View.
41 m
Exit the roundabout onto Scotswood View.
Scotswood View251 m
Turn left onto Cross Lane.
Cross Lane145 m
Turn right to stay on Cross Lane.
Cross Lane201 m
Turn left.
666 m
Turn left onto Wellington Road.
Wellington Road648 m
Turn left.
76 m
Turn left onto Colliery Road/A1114. Continue on A1114.
A1114644 m
Turn left onto St Omers Road.
St Omers Road295 m
Turn right.
298 m
Turn right onto Waterside Drive.
Waterside Drive77 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Gateshead · Route 18 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.
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 23.2 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, 70 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.
Carpets R Us
Start near Carpets R Us.
LGV Services
Continue to LGV Services.
Fawdon Interchange
Continue to Fawdon Interchange, taking the junction with good observation.
Great Parkway
Continue to Great Parkway, taking the junction with good observation.
North Park
Continue to North Park, taking the junction with good observation.
Floors-2-Go
Continue to Floors-2-Go.
Stoneacre Toyota (Gateshead);Stoneacre Toyota
Continue to Stoneacre Toyota (Gateshead);Stoneacre Toyota.
Pure Electric
Continue to Pure Electric.
Dunston Christian Spiritualist Church
Continue to Dunston Christian Spiritualist Church.
Redheugh Bridge Park
Continue to Redheugh Bridge Park.
Tsang Foods
Continue to Tsang Foods.
Denton Dene
Continue to Denton Dene.
Broadmead Way Evangelical Church
Continue to Broadmead Way Evangelical Church.
St Joseph's Benwell
Continue to St Joseph's Benwell.
Elswick Parish Church St Stephens & St Pauls
Continue to Elswick Parish Church St Stephens & St Pauls.
KFC
Continue to KFC.
Metrocentre Autoworld - Mainline UK
Continue to Metrocentre Autoworld - Mainline UK.
MetroCentre
Continue to MetroCentre.
Tudor Rose
Continue to Tudor Rose.
Hi Profile Plastics
Finish back near Hi Profile Plastics, completing the loop.
4 roundabouts · 18 turns · 5 sets of lights
6 roundabouts · 19 turns · 7 sets of lights
9 roundabouts · 16 turns · 4 sets of lights
7 roundabouts · 15 turns · 1 set of lights
This route is 63.2 km and takes about 45 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Gateshead test centre, not an official DVSA route.