Ireland (and the UK, but that’s beside the point) has a lot of roundabouts on its roads. They’re a very sensible way of handling intersections, but they are unfamiliar to most North Americans, who are worried they will get trapped on one and go around and around until the car runs out of gas (or petrol). This is the first of a series comparing intersections of various sizes. Here we have two two-lane roads crossing, in Dublin on the left and in Toronto on the right. In Dublin cars wouldn’t stop but would move slowly through or around the roundabout and then exit; in Toronto every car comes to a full stop, waits for any cars that got there first to move through the intersection, then moves on.

Small Irish roundabout. In Ireland one drives on the left.

Small Toronto intersection. Note the stop signs (facing away) and disrepair of the road. In Canada one drives on the right.