Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” has broken the record for the longest-standing number one single on the charts. The genre-bending track has seen seemingly endless remixes from the likes of Billy Ray Cyrus to Lil Wayne. It’s become so well known that towns with street signs featuring the words “old town road” have begun disappearing, and city officials are fed up.
Wellesley, Massachusetts, a small town in the greater Boston area, has been feeling the effects of Lil Nas X-inspired thieves. Officials say a street named “Old Town Road” is continuously missing a street sign. The approximately 510-foot-long road has had its marker sign stolen at least three times since spring.
According to local news site The Swellesley Report, the town understands the sign stealers don’t mean to be malicious, but they still cause a costly nuisance. “The behavior is likely the work of individuals playing pranks, but it costs the town a lot of time and money to locate, repair — and where the signs and posts are damaged — replace, and reinstall the signs,” said Stephanie Hawkinson, the town’s communications and project manager. Hawkinson is also concerned about safety. “[It] could mean life or death for someone in need,” Hawkinson says. “I know it sounds dramatic, but it’s a very real and frightening possibility.”
Wellesley isn’t the only town to experience a similar problem. Sicamous, British Columbia has had so many “Old Town Road” signs stolen, the town has opted to produce replicas and sell them for $25 a piece. Selling the signs separately saves the town from the unintended costly affects of Lil Nas X’s viral hit. Wellesley’s Highway Dept. pointed out that those interested could purchase and “Old Town Road” sign from the same place that the city does, but until then, Wellesley plans to refrain from replacing the sign until the song’s sensation has died down.
