Near Launceston test centre
Rated easy from its real manoeuvre load, 4 roundabouts and 15 turns across 23 navigation steps.
This is an independent 24.6 km practice route near Launceston 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.
On this route you’ll practise multiple roundabouts, dual-carriageway joins, national-speed roads, 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 shops, pubs and schools, 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 Launceston 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 83-step drive on real, named roads (about 24.8 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive north.
70 m
Turn right.
14 m
Turn left onto B3362.
B3362165 m
Turn right onto A388.
A3881.4 km
Keep left to stay on A388.
A388249 m
Keep right to stay on A388.
A388107 m
Keep right to stay on A388.
A38865 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A388.
15 m
Exit the roundabout onto A388.
A38845 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit.
43 m
Exit the roundabout onto A30.
A301.2 km
Take the Pennygillam Junction exit onto A388.
399 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Western Road/A388.
93 m
Exit the roundabout onto Western Road/A388.
Western Road65 m
Keep straight to stay on Western Road/A388.
Western Road725 m
Make a sharp left onto Chapel Hill.
Chapel Hill131 m
Turn left onto Carboth Lane.
Carboth Lane36 m
Keep left to stay on Carboth Lane.
Carboth Lane54 m
Make a sharp left onto Western Road/A388.
Western Road19 m
Turn right onto Hendra Vale.
Hendra Vale216 m
Move right to stay on Hendra Vale.
Hendra Vale776 m
Turn left onto Hendra Vale.
Hendra Vale157 m
Turn right onto Western Road/A388.
Western Road180 m
Make a sharp left onto Chapel Hill.
Chapel Hill131 m
Turn left onto Carboth Lane.
Carboth Lane36 m
Keep left to stay on Carboth Lane.
Carboth Lane54 m
Move right onto Western Road/A388.
Western Road591 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Pennygillam Way.
98 m
Exit the roundabout onto Pennygillam Way.
Pennygillam Way1.3 km
Make a right U-turn to stay on Pennygillam Way.
Pennygillam Way861 m
Turn right onto Quarry Crescent.
Quarry Crescent657 m
Turn left onto Pennygillam Way.
Pennygillam Way1.2 km
Make a right U-turn to stay on Pennygillam Way.
Pennygillam Way1.3 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Western Road/A388.
8 m
Exit the roundabout onto Western Road/A388.
Western Road866 m
Keep straight to stay on Western Road/A388.
Western Road110 m
Keep left to stay on A388.
A388448 m
Turn right onto Wooda Road/A388. Continue on A388.
A388539 m
Turn left onto Tavistock Road/A388.
Tavistock Road25 m
Keep left to stay on Tavistock Road/A388.
Tavistock Road127 m
Turn left to stay on A388.
A388597 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Kensey Valley Meadow.
18 m
Exit the roundabout onto Kensey Valley Meadow.
Kensey Valley Meadow64 m
Move left to stay on Kensey Valley Meadow.
Kensey Valley Meadow24 m
Turn left to stay on Kensey Valley Meadow.
Kensey Valley Meadow32 m
Turn right to stay on Kensey Valley Meadow.
Kensey Valley Meadow83 m
Turn left to stay on Kensey Valley Meadow.
Kensey Valley Meadow87 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Kensey Valley Meadow.
Kensey Valley Meadow87 m
Turn right to stay on Kensey Valley Meadow.
Kensey Valley Meadow108 m
Turn right to stay on Kensey Valley Meadow.
Kensey Valley Meadow89 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A388.
43 m
Exit the roundabout onto A388.
A388597 m
Turn right onto Tavistock Road/A388.
Tavistock Road152 m
Turn right onto Dockacre Road/A388.
Dockacre Road538 m
Turn right to stay on A388.
A38880 m
Keep right to stay on A388.
A388363 m
Turn right onto Dutson Road/A388.
Dutson Road815 m
Keep left to stay on Dutson Road/A388.
Dutson Road104 m
Keep left to stay on A388.
A388184 m
Keep left to stay on A388.
A38881 m
Turn left onto Cross Lanes.
Cross Lanes1.1 km
Turn left onto Roydon Road/B3254.
Roydon Road569 m
Turn right onto Dutson Road/A388.
Dutson Road75 m
Turn left onto Newport Square/A388. Continue on A388.
A388780 m
Turn left.
84 m
Move right onto Broad Street.
Broad Street199 m
Turn left onto Exeter Street.
Exeter Street18 m
Keep straight to stay on Exeter Street.
Exeter Street176 m
Turn right onto Tavistock Road/A388.
Tavistock Road795 m
Turn right onto Race Hill.
Race Hill83 m
Keep right to stay on Race Hill.
Race Hill471 m
Turn left onto Bounsall's Lane.
Bounsall's Lane48 m
Turn right.
43 m
Make a right U-turn.
43 m
Turn right onto Bounsall's Lane.
Bounsall's Lane165 m
Turn left onto Windmill Hill.
Windmill Hill601 m
Turn right.
50 m
Turn left onto Dunheved Road.
Dunheved Road65 m
Turn right onto Dunheved Fields.
Dunheved Fields192 m
Turn right onto Hendra Vale.
Hendra Vale184 m
Move left to stay on Hendra Vale.
Hendra Vale249 m
Turn right onto Western Road/A388.
Western Road123 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Launceston · Route 8 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.
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 3.1 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 (30, 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.
Topps Tiles
Start near Topps Tiles.
Asda Express
Continue to Asda Express.
Philip Warren
Continue to Philip Warren.
British Wool
Continue to British Wool.
Martin's Cash + Carry
Continue to Martin's Cash + Carry.
Greggs
Continue to Greggs.
Howdens
Continue to Howdens.
RGB Building Supplies
Continue to RGB Building Supplies.
Toolstation
Continue to Toolstation.
Andy's Antiques
Continue to Andy's Antiques.
Cornovii Cars
Continue to Cornovii Cars.
Newport Motor Company
Continue to Newport Motor Company.
Launceston Stoves & Heating
Continue to Launceston Stoves & Heating.
Parkwood Cars
Continue to Parkwood Cars.
White Horse Inn
Continue to White Horse Inn.
Greenaways Service & M.O.T Centre Ltd
Continue to Greenaways Service & M.O.T Centre Ltd.
Launceston Arms
Continue to Launceston Arms.
Newmarket Inn
Continue to Newmarket Inn.
Westgate Inn
Continue to Westgate Inn.
Windmill Hill Academy
Finish back near Windmill Hill Academy, completing the loop.
5 roundabouts · 20 turns · 2 sets of lights
5 roundabouts · 23 turns
7 roundabouts · 19 turns · 1 set of lights
8 roundabouts · 17 turns
This route is 24.6 km and takes about 30 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Launceston test centre, not an official DVSA route.