TAKE the highway past the Dutch village of Jelsum and the road would play you a tune.

Created by strategically laid “rumble strips” as a way of livening up journeys across the flat landscape, the novelty had worn thin for locals who say the constant droning melody is driving them mad.

The tune is created when car tires drive over the strips — which are usually deployed at the side of major roads to warn drivers they are straying off course.

If hit at the correct speed — the 60 kmph limit — the road sings out the anthem of the Friesland region — a northern part of the Netherlands that has a distinct language and culture.

But it is loud and the sound travels, and locals say the musical road had created a never-ending cacophony that keeps them awake at night.

The Friesland authority removed the rumble strips April 10.

(SD-Agencies)