Hobart’s landmark Railway Roundabout has been named “roundabout of the year” by an international group of traffic circle enthusiasts.

Hobart’s award-winning traffic circle was originally built for the city’s main railway station.

A fountain and garden for pedestrians sits in the centre of the roundabout as traffic whirls past.

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For the past two years the “one-way gyratory accolade” was awarded to US traffic circles.

In 2013 the honour went to Columbus Circle in New York which sits on the western corner of the city’s iconic Central Park.

In 2014 the award went to the Idaho Falls roundabout in the county Bonneville, Idaho.

Kevin Beresford, president of the UK-based Roundabout Appreciation Society, said Hobart’s roundabout was a stand out.

“Our committee were bowled over by the effort, inventiveness and enthusiasm of Hobart’s renovation of its favourite roundabout,” it said in a statement.

“The citizens of Hobart should feel very proud for their city achieving such a high one-way gyratory accolade.”

The Roundabout Appreciation Society commended the well-kept gardens.

The fountain, it said, is spectacular with a space-age influence.

Geoff Parr was one of three designers who won a national competition to design the roundabout’s centrepiece, a fountain, in 1961.

“It was quite an interesting centre and it was to bring life to the city,” he said.

“There were critics and there will always be with a public work, I can’t say it was unanimously appreciated but I think generally people quite liked it.”

Hobart Lord Mayor Sue Hickey was pleased the roundabout’s recent $370,000 restoration had been recognised.

“So it’s really quite a spectacular fountain and it’s much-loved by Hobartians,” she said.

But not everyone admires the roundabout’s complexity.

In March, independent analysis of crash data revealed there were about 1,700 crashes at the Railway Roundabout between 2004 and 2014.

At the time, the RACT called for a safety review and possibly changes to the infrastructure.

But Alderman Hickey believes any changes to this landmark would cause public outrage.

The Roundabout Appreciation Society will feature Hobart’s gyratory in its annual calendar, which for some is a collector’s item.