Near Middlesbrough test centre
Rated challenging from its real manoeuvre load, 7 roundabouts, 20 turns and 2 signalled junctions across 30 navigation steps.
This is an independent 77.9 km practice loop near Middlesbrough test centre, taking roughly 40 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 Avenue, Marton Road Interchange, Cargo Fleet Lane Roundabout and Tees Dock Road Roundabout. 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, 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 shops, named junctions, pubs and churches, 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 Middlesbrough 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 119-step drive on real, named roads (about 77.9 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive northwest on Maxwell Road.
Maxwell Road57 m
Turn right onto Sotherby Road.
Sotherby Road313 m
Turn right onto Wallis Road.
Wallis Road504 m
Turn left onto Skipper's Lane.
Skipper's Lane120 m
Move left onto Sotherby Road.
Sotherby Road378 m
Turn left onto Wallis Road.
Wallis Road504 m
Turn right onto Skipper's Lane.
Skipper's Lane435 m
Turn left onto Trunk Road/A1085. Continue on A1085.
A1085616 m
Make a right U-turn at Normanby Road to stay on A1085.
A10851.0 km
Turn right.
58 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit.
47 m
Exit the roundabout.
58 m
Turn left onto A1085.
A10851.0 km
Turn right onto Normanby Road.
Normanby Road604 m
Turn right onto The AVenue.
The AVenue78 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto The Avenue.
107 m
Exit the roundabout onto The Avenue.
The Avenue73 m
Turn left onto Lime Road.
Lime Road537 m
Turn right onto Craigearn Road.
Craigearn Road135 m
Turn left onto Blantyre Road.
Blantyre Road48 m
Turn left onto Ashkirk Road.
Ashkirk Road177 m
Turn right onto Kinloch Road.
Kinloch Road287 m
Turn right onto Blantyre Road.
Blantyre Road133 m
Turn right onto Balmor Road.
Balmor Road114 m
Turn left onto Glenmor Grove.
Glenmor Grove54 m
Turn left onto Ashkirk Road.
Ashkirk Road122 m
Turn left onto Blantyre Road.
Blantyre Road244 m
Turn left onto Kirknewton Road.
Kirknewton Road151 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Kirknewton Road.
Kirknewton Road68 m
Turn left onto Braidwood Road.
Braidwood Road121 m
Turn left onto High Street/B1380.
High Street201 m
Turn left onto Normanby Road.
Normanby Road1.6 km
Turn left onto Trunk Road/A1085. Continue on A1085.
A10852.1 km
Turn right onto Cargo Fleet Lane/A171.
Cargo Fleet Lane756 m
Enter Cargo Fleet Lane Roundabout and take the 1st exit towards The North/Stockton/Middlesbrough Centre/North Ormesby.
Cargo Fleet Lane Roundabout2 m
Exit the roundabout towards The North/Stockton/Middlesbrough Centre/North Ormesby.
A663.6 km
Take the Newport Junction exit towards Riverside Park/Cannon Park.
390 m
Enter Newport Junction and take the 5th exit onto Tees Newport Bridge Approach Road/A1032.
Newport Junction261 m
Exit the roundabout onto Tees Newport Bridge Approach Road/A1032. Continue on A1032.
A10321.4 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Haverton Hill Road/A1046.
93 m
Exit the roundabout onto Haverton Hill Road/A1046.
Haverton Hill Road2.3 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Haverton Hill Road/A1046.
43 m
Exit the roundabout onto Haverton Hill Road/A1046. Continue on A1046.
A1046708 m
Turn right onto Port Clarence Road/A1046.
Port Clarence Road1.1 km
Turn left onto High Street.
High Street56 m
Turn left onto Victoria Terrace.
Victoria Terrace103 m
Turn left onto West Street.
West Street53 m
Turn right onto Port Clarence Road/A1046.
Port Clarence Road1.0 km
Turn left onto Clarence Street/A1046. Continue on A1046.
A1046703 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Haverton Hill Road/A1046.
30 m
Exit the roundabout onto Haverton Hill Road/A1046.
Haverton Hill Road2.3 km
Turn left towards Middlesbrough.
A10321.5 km
Enter Newport Junction and take the 2nd exit onto A66.
Newport Junction53 m
Exit the roundabout onto A66.
A662.7 km
Keep right to stay on A66.
A662.8 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A66.
63 m
Exit the roundabout onto A66.
A662.6 km
Enter Tees Dock Road Roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A1053/Tees Dock Road.
Tees Dock Road Roundabout59 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1053/Tees Dock Road.
A1053321 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto A1053/Greystone Road.
112 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1053/Greystone Road.
A10531.9 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit towards Teesport/(Middlesbrough)/Grangetown.
247 m
Exit the roundabout towards Teesport/(Middlesbrough)/Grangetown.
A10531.9 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Trunk Road/A1085.
2 m
Exit the roundabout onto Trunk Road/A1085. Continue on A1085.
A1085581 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Broadway/A1085.
32 m
Exit the roundabout onto Broadway/A1085. Continue on A1085.
A1085788 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Trunk Road/A1085.
47 m
Exit the roundabout onto Trunk Road/A1085. Continue on A1085.
A10851.7 km
Turn right.
58 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit.
47 m
Exit the roundabout.
58 m
Turn left onto A1085.
A10851.7 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Trunk Road/A1085.
44 m
Exit the roundabout onto Trunk Road/A1085. Continue on A1085.
A1085791 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Broadway/A1085.
26 m
Exit the roundabout onto Broadway/A1085. Continue on A1085.
A1085581 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto A1053/Greystone Road.
166 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1053/Greystone Road.
A10531.9 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A174/The Parkway.
116 m
Exit the roundabout onto A174/The Parkway.
A1748.4 km
Take the exit.
A1032282 m
Keep right to stay on A1032.
A1032196 m
Turn right to stay on A1032.
A1032281 m
Enter Blue Bell Roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Acklam Road/A1032.
Blue Bell Roundabout39 m
Exit the roundabout onto Acklam Road/A1032.
Acklam Road1.5 km
Turn right onto Hall Drive.
Hall Drive541 m
Turn left onto Hall Gardens.
Hall Gardens120 m
Turn left onto Church Drive.
Church Drive157 m
Turn right to stay on Church Drive.
Church Drive434 m
Turn right onto Hall Gardens.
Hall Gardens120 m
Turn right onto Hall Drive.
Hall Drive541 m
Turn right onto Acklam Road/A1032.
Acklam Road456 m
Move left onto Mandale Road/A1130.
Mandale Road826 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Mandale Road/A1130.
29 m
Exit the roundabout onto Mandale Road/A1130.
Mandale Road148 m
Enter Mandale Interchange and take the 3rd exit onto A19.
Mandale Interchange240 m
Exit the roundabout onto A19.
A19309 m
Keep right to stay on A19 towards The North.
A19843 m
Take the exit towards Middlesbrough.
A66181 m
Keep right to stay on A66 towards Middlesbrough.
A664.4 km
Keep right to stay on A66.
A66454 m
Take the Middlehaven Interchange exit.
A66184 m
Turn right onto Borough Road.
Borough Road57 m
Turn right to take the A66 ramp.
A66734 m
Take the Marton Road Interchange exit.
Marton Road Interchange319 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto A66/Marton Road Interchange.
188 m
Exit the roundabout onto A66.
A66439 m
Keep right to stay on A66.
A662.8 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Middlesbrough Road.
115 m
Exit the roundabout onto Middlesbrough Road.
Middlesbrough Road527 m
Turn left onto Normanby Road.
Normanby Road67 m
Turn left onto A66.
A66517 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Middlesbrough Road.
46 m
Exit the roundabout onto Middlesbrough Road.
Middlesbrough Road844 m
Turn left onto Telford Road.
Telford Road254 m
Turn left onto Sotherby Road.
Sotherby Road92 m
Turn right onto Maxwell Road.
Maxwell Road51 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Middlesbrough · Route 10 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.
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
Watch your lane discipline and signalling at Cargo Fleet Lane Roundabout, Tees Dock Road Roundabout. Get into the correct lane early and check your exit mirror before leaving.
Dual-carriageway join
About 33.2 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 (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.
B&Q
Start near B&Q.
Avenue
Continue to Avenue, taking the junction with good observation.
Tesco Express
Continue to Tesco Express.
Marton Road Interchange
Continue to Marton Road Interchange, taking the junction with good observation.
Isaac Wilson
Continue to Isaac Wilson.
St Columba
Continue to St Columba.
Haverton Hill Hotel
Continue to Haverton Hill Hotel.
High Clarence Primary School
Continue to High Clarence Primary School.
Bloom
Continue to Bloom.
Cargo Fleet Lane Roundabout
Continue to Cargo Fleet Lane Roundabout, taking the junction with good observation.
S.G. Petch
Continue to S.G. Petch.
Tees Dock Road Roundabout
Continue to Tees Dock Road Roundabout, taking the junction with good observation.
Tesco Extra
Continue to Tesco Extra.
Sandstone Nab
Continue to Sandstone Nab.
Blue Bell
Continue to Blue Bell.
Coronation
Continue to Coronation.
Odeon
Continue to Odeon.
Masjid-E-Nomira
Continue to Masjid-E-Nomira.
ST. Peters R.C
Continue to ST. Peters R.C.
Burger King
Finish back near Burger King, completing the loop.
7 roundabouts · 16 turns · 2 sets of lights
11 roundabouts · 13 turns · 3 sets of lights
7 roundabouts · 12 turns · 2 sets of lights
6 roundabouts · 15 turns · 3 sets of lights
This route is 77.9 km and takes about 40 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Middlesbrough test centre, not an official DVSA route.