COUNTRYSIDE campaigners calling for historic road signs to be saved today said rural communities in North and East Yorkshire would be "lost" without them.

English Heritage has teamed up with the Department of Transport, and is urging councils to retain, repair and reintroduce traditional "fingerposts".

It said the distinctive posts - which have guided travellers at road junctions across the UK for centuries - have become an integral part of the character of the countryside.

Some have stood for 250 years. Heritage officials say the regional variations, based on a common model, help reinforce local distinctiveness.

But now many of the weather-worn black and white icons, which litter numerous picturesque roads in Ryedale and The Wolds, are threatened by neglect and decay.

In a bid to halt the decline, English Heritage today pointed the way for local councils to draw up restoration databases and said community groups should carry out checks of the landmark cast iron signs.

Giles Proctor, historic buildings architect with English Heritage's Yorkshire region, said: "Traditional signs are not only attractive in their own right, but have become important icons of the region's identity. Many still survive, but some are in urgent need of repair."

He said: "We would like to see more highways departments compile registers and we would also encourage community groups to carry out audits.

"Where restoration is required, that will help support local jobs and craftsmanship."

Coun Lindsay Burr, chairwoman of Ryedale District Council, said she hoped the campaign would go the distance.

"People need to know where they are going," she said. "I like the old traditional signs - they do a good job.

"If it has been highlighted that they are in disrepair, the issue needs to be looked at. But at the end of the day, who is going to pay for it?"

The new fingerpost campaign has been drawn up by the Government in partnership with English Heritage, the Countryside Agency and the Campaign to Protect Rural England.

They call for ancient fingerposts and milestones to be maintained regularly by councils and, where possible, reintroduced as part of village design blueprints.

Funding for repairs could be accessed as part of a Local Transport Plan bid, they said.

Updated: 10:19 Wednesday, August 03, 2005