Near York test centre
Rated demanding from its real manoeuvre load, 24 roundabouts and 26 turns across 55 navigation steps.
This is an independent 20.9 km practice loop near York test centre, taking roughly 24 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 Grimston Bar. 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 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, schools, churches 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 York 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:
The full 55-step drive on real, named roads (about 20.9 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive south.
212 m
Turn left.
15 m
Turn right.
54 m
Turn right.
48 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Monks Cross Drive.
75 m
Exit the roundabout onto Monks Cross Drive.
Monks Cross Drive344 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Jockey Lane.
38 m
Exit the roundabout onto Jockey Lane.
Jockey Lane736 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Malton Road/A1036.
71 m
Exit the roundabout onto Malton Road/A1036.
Malton Road1.8 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Heworth Green/A1036.
36 m
Exit the roundabout onto Heworth Green/A1036. Continue on A1036.
A1036764 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A1036.
28 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1036.
A1036320 m
Turn right onto Lord Mayors Walk/A1036.
Lord Mayors Walk406 m
Turn left onto Gillygate/A1036.
Gillygate288 m
Turn right onto Bootham/A19.
Bootham462 m
Turn left onto Queen Anne's Road.
Queen Anne's Road39 m
Turn right.
37 m
Make a right U-turn.
37 m
Turn left onto Queen Anne's Road.
Queen Anne's Road39 m
Turn right onto Bootham/A19.
Bootham462 m
Turn left onto Gillygate/A1036.
Gillygate288 m
Turn right onto Lord Mayors Walk/A1036.
Lord Mayors Walk406 m
Turn left onto Monkgate/A1036. Continue on A1036.
A1036323 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto A1036.
51 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1036.
A1036394 m
Move left onto Foss Bank/A1036. Continue on A1036.
A1036843 m
Turn left onto Lawrence Street/A1079. Continue on A1079.
A10792.3 km
Turn left onto Pinelands Way.
Pinelands Way145 m
Turn left onto Eskdale Avenue.
Eskdale Avenue77 m
Turn right onto Heather Bank.
Heather Bank347 m
Turn left.
29 m
Make a right U-turn.
29 m
Turn right onto The Leyes.
The Leyes347 m
Turn left onto Eskdale Avenue.
Eskdale Avenue77 m
Turn right onto Pinelands Way.
Pinelands Way145 m
Turn left onto Hull Road/A1079.
Hull Road333 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Hull Road/A1079.
50 m
Exit the roundabout onto Hull Road/A1079.
Hull Road1.1 km
Enter Grimston Bar and take the 1st exit.
Grimston Bar23 m
Exit the roundabout onto A64.
A643.7 km
Take the A1237 exit towards Harrogate/Thirsk/York.
A1237291 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A1237/Ring Road.
60 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1237/Ring Road.
A12371.4 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Monks Cross Link.
7 m
Exit the roundabout onto Monks Cross Link.
Monks Cross Link1.1 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Monks Cross Drive.
101 m
Exit the roundabout onto Monks Cross Drive.
Monks Cross Drive338 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit.
71 m
Exit the roundabout.
46 m
Turn left.
54 m
Turn left.
15 m
Turn left.
72 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the York · School-zone practice loop 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.
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.
Local junctions
Take each junction on its merits, good observation, clear signalling and the right speed on approach. Rehearse the sequence so nothing surprises you on the day.
Navigate by these 20 catalogued landmarks rather than a memorised turn list, an indicative loop, not an official DVSA route.
New Look
Start near New Look.
Regatta Great Outdoors
Continue to Regatta Great Outdoors.
York Autobody Shop
Continue to York Autobody Shop.
Wilco Motorsave
Continue to Wilco Motorsave.
Just to Say
Continue to Just to Say.
Busy Bees York Heworth
Continue to Busy Bees York Heworth.
Trinity Methodist Church
Continue to Trinity Methodist Church.
McGregor Wing
Continue to McGregor Wing.
York City Church
Continue to York City Church.
Bodrum
Continue to Bodrum.
Regency Dry Cleaning
Continue to Regency Dry Cleaning.
Bootham Tavern
Continue to Bootham Tavern.
De Grey Court
Continue to De Grey Court.
Graveyard of St Maurice Church
Continue to Graveyard of St Maurice Church.
Black Horse
Continue to Black Horse.
Foss Islands Nature Reserve
Continue to Foss Islands Nature Reserve.
Rose and Crown
Continue to Rose and Crown.
Beeswing Ale House
Continue to Beeswing Ale House.
Black Bull
Continue to Black Bull.
Grimston Bar
Finish back near Grimston Bar, completing the loop.
40 roundabouts · 6 turns
27 roundabouts · 6 turns
20 roundabouts · 24 turns
18 roundabouts · 19 turns
This route is 20.9 km and takes about 24 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near York test centre, not an official DVSA route.