A woman visiting her sister in North Herts was so dismayed by the grotty state of rural road signs that she decided to take matters into her own hands and mount a mop mission to make things clearer for motorists.

The Comet: Davina Leighton gets scrubbing to make things clearer for North Herts motoristsDavina Leighton gets scrubbing to make things clearer for North Herts motorists (Image: Archant)

Davina Leighton was staying at her sister Doreen Leighton’s house in Pegsdon, near Hitchin, and came across the offending sign while walking dogs.

The sign, pointing to Pegsdon and nearby Shillington, was covered in green mould.

Davina strode back to her sister’s house to get a bucket of soapy water, found a mop, and then got to work.

Davina, who lives near Bristol, told the Comet: “I thought how much nicer the sign would look if it had a good clean, so I decided to do it myself.

“To be honest I’ve been wanting to clean it for ages, as it’s been dirty for a while.

“My friend Gerald Howell, who was with me at the time, said it might be a good idea to wear a high-visibility jacket while I was doing it.

“Luckily he had one in his car back at the house so we got that, too, and I just popped it on to be on the safe side.

“It didn’t actually take that long to clean the sign – around 15 minutes. I think it looks good now, doesn’t it?

“Apart from the fact a dirty sign is unpleasant to look at, it could also raise safety concerns.

“If you’re a driver looking for somewhere and you can’t read a sign it might affect your driving, which could in turn lead to an accident, which no-one wants.

“I’m glad I did it because at the very least the clean sign should stop drivers getting lost – it’s just a pity that parts of the letters are missing.”

Sister Doreen said: “It was very good of Davina to show such a community-minded spirt.”

The road between Hitchin to Codicote has many other road signs that are equally in need of a good clean.

Contractors Ringway have the job of maintaining road signs on behalf of Herts County Council.

Divisional manager Kevin Carrol said: “We prioritise the cleaning of mandatory signs within the county in line with the budget available each year.”