The closed course is too simple compared to actual driving. Having said that, my road test back in the day was a joke. I literally drove around the block in West Warwick and then parked. I'm ashamed to admit I never bothered to learn parallel parking until I helped my kid prep for the closed course. IMO a combo of the two would be best. Show us you can maneuver in the tight closed course and you have a good spatial sense for the vehicle, then get on the road and show us you can move in traffic at speed.