The pedestrian crossing that appeared out of nowhere, then disappeared

A fake pedestrian crossing in Collingwood, near Nelson. Photo / Supplied

A mysterious pedestrian crossing has appeared in a South Island town -- and just as quickly disappeared again.

The crossing appeared to have been hand-painted onto the tarmac on Tasman St, in Collingwood, late last week, and was reportedly used by locals until it was removed by the council.

The white lines were painted onto the road in front of Collingwood On the Spot and Collingwood Memorial Hall.

Collingwood On the Sport owner Craig Bishop-Everett said the crossing appeared out of nowhere overnight.

"Someone seems to have decided that we need a crossing," he said.

"There's a lot of holidaymakers around at the moment, so the street's quite busy. It's gone now, though, so clearly it didn't please everyone."

Some locals believed it was done by people who had been drinking at Tinky's, the local tavern on the other side of the road.

"There's a few rumours floating around. A lot of people have been talking about it."