Residents of Muff Road in a small town in New Zealand are fed up with their rude-sounding street sign being stolen.

The solution, say the inhabitants of Timaru on the South Island, is to change its name for good.

Muff Road is almost impossible to find because its sign is stolen every time it is replaced, so the council has virtually given up.

To stop the farcical routine, Muff Road resident Roger Payne has asked that the street's name be changed to the far less troublesome Ohapi Road, after the local creek.

"It will just stop this ridiculous stealing of the road signs and link in with the history of the place," Mr Payne told the .

He will have to convince the council and all his neighbours to agree before the change can go ahead.

AAP