Roundabouts: yield to the right
Ireland drives on the left, so traffic already on a roundabout comes from your right. Yield to it and enter only when there is a safe gap.
Taking the first exit (turning left)
Approach in the left lane, signal left, stay left all the way round and off.
Going straight ahead
Approach in the left lane with no signal. Signal left only after you pass the exit before the one you want.
Signalling left too early is the classic mistake: a driver waiting at the previous exit reads it as "they are coming off here" and pulls out in front of you.
Taking an exit to the right
Approach in the right lane, signal right, then switch to left after passing the exit before yours.
Cyclists on roundabouts
A cyclist going straight ahead will often be in the left lane. If you are taking the same exit, hold back and let them clear it — turning left across a cyclist you have just overtaken is one of the most common ways cyclists are seriously injured.
Junctions
- Stop sign: a complete stop at the line, every time, even on an empty road.
- Yield sign: give way, but you need not stop if the way is genuinely clear.
- Roads of equal importance with no signs or markings: traffic on your right has right of way — but the Rules of the Road say it is not an absolute right, so approach slowly and be ready to give way. Where one road is clearly the major road, its traffic has priority whichever side it comes from.
- Turning right off a major road: yield to oncoming traffic and to pedestrians who have already started to cross the road you are turning into.
Yellow box junctions
Do not enter unless your exit is clear. The single exception: you may enter when turning right and the only thing blocking you is oncoming traffic you are waiting for.