9 of Merseyside's worst street signs

There are a number of reasons why road signs may be the cause of frustration for motorists and pedestrians. Incorrect signs can cause confusion, and are often an inconvenience to people who are relying on them for directions or information.

From spelling mistakes to poorly planned signage and construction problems, we have had a look at some of Merseyside's worst road and street signs and why the mistake may have occurred in the first place. Here are some the ECHO has spotted over the years.

Have you seen a street sign with a mistake you can't explain? Let us know in the comments below.

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'Heswell'

People were baffled by a road sign this week due to the incorrect spelling of a certain location. The sign, which the ECHO understands to be located on Welsh Road in Two Mills, Cheshire, was shared online.

The sign, which is atop of another sign directing people to Ness Gardens, is directing traffic towards 'Heswall'. However, the spelling of Heswall is not how it should be. The sign reads: “Neston, Heswell, West Kirby.” The only problem is that Heswell does not exist.

Residents shared a snap of the sign on a Facebook community page and it left people with one question, 'where is Heswell?' One person commented on the post simply saying 'Heswhere?'.

On October 30, Cheshire West and Chester Council told the ECHO that National Highways have undertaken works on the road. A spokesperson for National Highways said: “We are aware of the incorrect spelling on the sign and one of our contractors is presently in the process of replacing it.”

Southbrook Road, Belle Vale

A TikToker said he had “never seen anything like it in his life" after coming across a street sign in Belle Vale. TikTok user, Scouser with a Drone, uploaded a video of what people called a “nightmare” of a road sign.

In the video he can be heard saying: “Look at the size of that street sign. I’ve never seen nothing like that in my life. Wow. Any need for the size of it?”. The sign in question can be found in the L27 area of Belle Vale.

It indicates the start of Southbrook Road before, as the sign suggests, then leads into the likes of Silverbrook Road, Maytree Close and Mullrea Close to name a few. The road hosts St Cyril's Social Club and is nearby to Millstead School Netherley South. The extensive road sign was dubbed a "taxi nightmare" by residents, and is thought to be the longest road sign in Liverpool.

'Rathbourne Road'

Back in July, train commuters noticed a glaring error on part of a sign installed at Wavertree Technology Park. A number of people spotted a spelling mistake on signage as you enter the station, as well as commenting on the application of the new vinyl cover. Images taken by the Liverpool ECHO show directions on the sign guiding commuters to the way out, as well as Wavertree Avenue.

But the sign also directs commuters to nearby Rathbone Road, which is spelled incorrectly as "Rathbourne." The mistake was highlighted on X, formerly Twitter, by user @TourGuideLiverp who shared a photo of the new sign and added that it had also been "badly applied."

First believing it to be the responsibility of Merseytravel, he said: "Well done @Merseytravel. The new signage at Wavertree Tech Park is not only very badly applied with bubbled and wrinkled vinyl. They've also managed to spell Rathbone Road wrong."

He added to the ECHO: "I think it's important the little jobs are done well - errors like this show lack of care and pride in the job." The ECHO contacted Northern Rail, whose contractors actually carried out the work, to see if the issue would be rectified.

In a statement, a Northern spokesperson said: “A new vinyl cover with an incorrect spelling has been placed on a sign at Wavertree Technology Park station by one of our contractors. We will flag it with the contractor and request a replacement."

'Newton-le-Willows Village'

A "homemade" sign placed on Newton-le-Willows' High Street was the cause of frustration for residents. The sign reads: "Welcome to Newton-le-Willows. Please drive carefully through our village". This has caused some confusion, as well as anger among residents- who were quick to point out that Newton-le-Willows is a town of over 20,000 people- not a village.

Some say the sign, which was believed to have been put up by a member of the public - covering an old sign - exacerbated an existing divide between two parts of the town. Some residents living in the area surrounding the High Street are reported to refer to themselves as a village, separate from Earlestown, which is also within Newton-le-Willows.

A local councillor confirmed to the ECHO that the "flyposting" had been referred to the appropriate authorities and would be removed.

'Orrel Park'

Keen eyed passengers waiting for a train at a north Liverpool station may well have had their eye caught by Liverpool's most famous spelling mistake. As most people know, 'Orrell Park' is spelled with two 'L's' and correctly appears as such on the train station's sign.

However, a look from one of the platforms across to Orrell Park Hall (ballroom) will see a different spelling on the brick sign on the side of the building. The sign on the building has 'Orrell' spelled with just one 'L' - as in 'Orrel'.

Why the brickwork sign on one of the area's most recognisable landmarks has been incorrectly spelled has baffled many since the building was built nearly 100 years ago. In 1927, a new billiard hall - which later became a ballroom - was opened above a row of new shops opposite Orrell Park Station.

As for why the sign on the building is incorrectly spelled, the reason is down to a workman not thinking things through. When the hall was being built in 1927, the bricklayer when putting the name 'Orrell Park Hall' above the shops made a crucial mistake.

He used three frames of bricks to encompass the name, one per word. When the bricks were laid, he was left with space for only one letter 'L' in Orrell. And to this day, that's how the sign remains.

'Anthony Gomley statues'

A Merseyrail sign misspelled the name of the creator of one of Merseyside's most famous art installations back in 2019. The new information board at Blundellsands & Crosby station misspells sculptor Antony Gormley, the artist responsible for the iron men on Crosby beach, as 'Anthony Gomley'.

Antony Gormley's spectacular 'Another Place' on Crosby beach is one of Merseyside's most recognisable sights. The mistake was highlighted by twitter user Peter Harvey who shared a photo of the new sign.

He tweeted: "Shiny new sign promoting @IronMenCrosby. Thanks @Merseyrail or @Merseytravel. Antony is spelt wrong and Gormley. Can it be corrected please? I'm genuinely pleased there's a sign, just wish it was spelt correctly."

Merseyrail was quick to correct the sign and have it replaced.

'Ebeneezer Street'

People were left baffled by one street in Wirral in 2021 when there were signs with two different spellings of the street name. It was noticed that Ebenezer Street in Rock Ferry had two conflicting signs, one spelling Ebenezer with one 'e' and the other 'Ebeneezer Street' with two.

According to planning documents on the Wirral Council website and Google Streetview, Ebenezer should be spelled with one 'e' between the 'n' and the 'z', not two - the same way as the Charles Dickens character Ebenezer Scrooge.

According to Streetlist.co.uk, there are 20 other roads in the UK named Ebenezer Street. And according to old-maps.co.uk, the street didn't appear on records until the late 1880s, which will have coincided with the industrial boom of Birkenhead and the expansion from the Rock Park developments of the mid-1880s, which is now a conservation area.

Ebenezer Street sits just outside this conservation area and is currently home to industrial buildings. Wirral Council confirmed the correct spelling of the sign was Ebenezer.

'Tue Brook'

The sign for Tuebrook is written 'Tue Brook' which may be a nod to the small river or stream which flows through the suburb of West Derby and is the main tributary of the River Alt which now only runs underground.

But veteran Tuebrook councillor Steve Radford told the ECHO in 2022: "Historically Tuebrook has always been one word. The road signage is a recent phenomenon with no historical explanation. The signs have read 'Tue Brook' for many years, since the boundary review, but I couldn't justify making a big song and dance about re-designing road signs at public expense."

The road signage is the responsibility of Liverpool council's highways department. Asked to account for the "Tue Brook" spelling, a council spokesperson said: "As the signage dates back many years, we won’t have anyone in our highways team who could give a definitive answer. However, it could be a nod to the Tue Brook, after which the area was named."

'Willsford Avenune'

Back in 2009, an eight-year-old schoolboy pulled up a council on its poor spelling. Matthew Spurgin was astonished when Knowsley workmen installed road signs with a glaring error.

Matthew and his mum live on Willsford Avenue, in Waddicar near Kirkby. But new signs put at the end of the road had “avenue” written as “avenune”.

Speaking at the time Matthew said: “They should learn to spell things correctly. They need to look it up.” At the time he was a Year 4 Melling Primary pupil and added: “We do lots of literature in class and I like school. I got 10 out of 10 in my spellings. I think Knowsley would get about nine.”

Matthew’s mum, Jan Parry, 50, said: “He had noticed they were replacing the signs and then he said ‘but mum, look at them, they’re wrong’.” She said she called Knowsley straight away to tell them about the mix-up.

A Knowsley council spokeswoman claimed the error was made by contractors, rather than council officers and that correctly spelled signs had been ordered. They added: “The original – correctly spelled – nameplate for Willsford Avenue in Kirkby was replaced by contractors at the end of October as it had been damaged.

“The street name plates are produced by an outside contractor, and the original order shows that the road was correctly spelled. The contractor has been informed of the mistake and a replacement sign will be delivered and fitted."