Drivers approaching from the M27 should leave at Junction 11 and join the A32 towards Fareham, continuing along Gosport Road as signs for Lee-on-the-Solent appear. Solent Airport and the Hovercraft Museum both sit close to this final stretch and serve as useful landmarks to confirm you are nearly there, even before Meteor Way itself comes into view.
For candidates arriving by train, Fareham station is the nearest stop, with a taxi or local bus covering the remaining distance into Lee-on-the-Solent; services along this route run regularly enough to make it a workable option without a car. Anyone travelling down from London can take a train to Portsmouth Harbour and transfer onto a bus or taxi for the final leg, though this adds time compared with driving directly.
Parking near the seafront can be tight during summer weekends, when day-trippers add to the usual traffic, so arriving early is a sensible precaution rather than relying on finding a space close to Meteor Way at the last minute. Learners coming from Waterlooville or Hedge End tend to use the A32 for most of the journey, while those travelling from Bursledon or Netley are more likely to approach via Bursledon Road and the A27, joining the coast road for the final stretch into Lee-on-the-Solent.
Tests booked here run through the same national format as anywhere else: an eyesight check, two show-me-tell-me questions, then general driving that typically takes in a stretch of the A32 before dropping into the quieter streets nearer the seafront. One set manoeuvre and, in some tests, an emergency stop follow, before independent driving closes out the appointment, often along routes that loop back towards Gosport Road. Coastal weather adds an extra variable that inland test centres do not have to contend with, since crosswinds along the exposed seafront roads can catch out a driver who has only ever practised inland; building a little of that into lessons beforehand is worth doing if the forecast looks blustery on test day.
Whichever direction the journey starts from, the coastal setting means sea views and gusty conditions are common on test day, so a final check of tyre pressures and mirror adjustment before setting off is worth the extra few minutes, particularly for motorcycle candidates.
Page reviewed and updated 17 July 2026.