Cambridgeshire · East of England
Peterborough driving test centre
52.8% of car practical tests taken at Peterborough passed in 2025-26, from 10,551 tests. Pass rates, local road types and how we prepare you for this centre.
Peterborough pass rates
Pass rate 2025-26
52.8%
5,569 passes
National average
50%
+2.8 points here
Tests conducted
10,551
about 879 a month
Best published year
52.8%
2025-26
10,551 car practical tests were taken at Peterborough in 2025-26. 52.8% passed, 2.8 percentage points above the national average of 50%. It is up on 2019-20, when 45.7% passed.
Over the published years the rate has moved between 45.7% in 2019-20 and 52.8% in 2025-26, so a single year's figure is a weak guide on its own. In 2025-26 the rate was 54.5% for male candidates and 50.8% for female candidates. That works out at roughly 879 tests a month, which is what waiting times at Peterborough depend on more than the pass rate does.
- Peterborough
- National average
| Year | Tests | Passes | Pass rate | National | Male | Female |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 10,551 | 5,569 | 52.8% | 50% | 54.5% | 50.8% |
| 2024-25 | 11,021 | 5,535 | 50.2% | 48.7% | 52.2% | 47.7% |
| 2023-24 | 10,467 | 4,944 | 47.2% | 47.9% | 48.6% | 45.6% |
| 2022-23 | 8,874 | 4,388 | 49.4% | 48.4% | 52.5% | 46% |
| 2021-22 | 9,089 | 4,693 | 51.6% | 48.9% | 53.7% | 49.4% |
| 2019-20 | 10,374 | 4,736 | 45.7% | 45.9% | 49.3% | 42.2% |
Source: DVSA table DRT122A, car practical driving test pass rates by test centre, published on GOV.UK. Figures are financial years running April to March.
Where Peterborough test centre is
Arrive ten minutes early and park where you can pull out easily. The waiting room is small at most centres, so your instructor will normally wait in the car park while you take the test.
Driving out of Peterborough
Instructors who teach out of Peterborough report the same road mix on most routes: parkways, roundabouts and estate roads. Learners who have only driven quiet estate roads tend to find the pace higher than they expect.
Parkway driving at 50–70mph is standard.
Peterborough covers learners in and around Peterborough, and it is where most of our Peterborough course students sit the test. If you are choosing between centres, practise the road types listed above rather than picking on pass-rate figures alone.
The aim is simple: nothing on the drive should be new on the day.
Roads you are likely to meet
Parkways
Roundabouts
Estate roads
- Parkway driving at 50–70mph is standard.
Test routes are no longer published by the DVSA, and examiners vary them. Treat this as a guide to the local road types rather than a route list. Book your test and check availability on GOV.UK.
Where marks are lost at Peterborough
Lane discipline on roundabouts
The fault is usually committed before the give-way line: late lane selection, a signal that contradicts the exit taken, or creeping forward while still looking left.
Parked cars and passing gaps
Leave a door's width past parked cars, and give way early enough that the oncoming driver can see you have decided.
How we prepare you for this centre
Practice where you will be marked
Your instructor works the roads around Peterborough in the sessions before your test — parkways included — not generic estate roads.
A marked mock run
Run silently and scored properly — no coaching mid-drive — then debriefed fault by fault.
Manoeuvres to standard
Bay park, parallel park, pull up on the right and forward bay — rehearsed on live roads near the centre rather than an empty car park.
Everything around the drive
Paperwork, show me / tell me questions and the independent drive, run through in advance.
Courses that suit test-centre prep
Peterborough test centre FAQs
What are the test routes like at Peterborough?
The DVSA stopped publishing official routes, and examiners vary them. In practice, routes from Peterborough draw on parkways, roundabouts, estate roads, so those are the conditions to rehearse rather than a fixed sequence of streets.
What do learners most often fail on at Peterborough?
lane discipline on roundabouts, parked cars and passing gaps — all of which come directly from the road types on the local network.
Can I take an intensive course and test at Peterborough?
Yes. We match you with a DVSA approved instructor who teaches on these roads day to day, and we look for the earliest practical slot at Peterborough or a nearby centre serving Peterborough.
How do I book a practical test at Peterborough?
Practical tests are booked through GOV.UK with your provisional licence and theory certificate numbers. We can check cancellations for you once your course dates are set.
What do I need to bring to Peterborough?
Aim to be there ten minutes before your slot with your provisional licence. Your instructor will normally use the half hour beforehand for a warm-up drive on nearby roads rather than sitting in the car park.
Does Peterborough have a good pass rate?
Travelling for a higher published pass rate usually backfires: you arrive tired, on roads you have never driven. Preparing properly for Peterborough is the better use of the same hours.
Not sure how many hours you need?
Answer four quick questions and we will recommend a course based on your experience, not a sales target.