What is the difference between a roundabout and a traffic circle?
There are three basic principles that distinguish the modern roundabout from the traffic circle: 1. A roundabout uses the “yield-at-entry” rule where the traffic in the roundabout has the right-of-way and the approaching vehicles wait for a gap in the traffic before entering the circle. The opposite holds true for traffic circles, although found in many different forms. One example is requiring the circulating vehicles to grant the right-of-way to entering vehicles. Also, some circles use traffic signals or signs to regulate vehicle entry. 2. Due to the larger diameters and wider roads, traffic circles were designed for higher speeds and merging manageability. On the other hand, roundabouts involve low speeds (the East Gum and Bourn Drive roundabout is designed for speeds at 15 mph) due to the small diameters, deflected entrances, and yielded entries. 3. Because the roundabout is a smaller circle, the deflection at entry lends to their safe operation. The geometry of the deflection and
