A grieving mum is stepping up her road safety campaign efforts following what would have been her daughter's 14th birthday.

Dawn Hopkins invited family and friends to release balloons and lanterns into the sky over Dover, on Thursday, to celebrate Mya Lawrence.

The teenager died last October after being hit by a car as she crossed the A256 Whitfield Hill near the roundabout junction with the A2 in Dover.

She had been making her way back from a trip to McDonald's.

Last month, Miss Hopkins launched a petition calling on the council to improve pedestrian crossing facilities.

Now, with almost 2,000 signatures collected, she is keen to move forward with a proposal for a footbridge, which would be called Mya's Way.

She said: "You still see kids running across the road, playing chicken in the road. Something has got to be done."

Miss Hopkins has collected over 1,000 signatures online and 800 on paper.

The B&M shop worker says she has been using her days off to collect names by door knocking.

She has also left copies of the petition in the schools, local shops and her partner, a labourer, has shared it with colleagues in Deal.

She has been in contact with MP Natalie Elphicke who has acknowledged her efforts.

She is waiting for a meeting with a council highways department.

The area already has an underpass between Honeywood Road and Archers Court Road.

But Miss Hopkins explained that people don't like to use it because it is dark, messy, often slippery and on other times flooded.

She believes children going to and from school and the elderly trying to reach shops would use a footbridge.

She said: "The response has been mainly positive.

"Some people are on our side and some aren't.

"We see that all the new housing estates down the other end of Whitfield are getting crossings and traffic lights, but it's the old parts that need them.

"It's down to money."

Mya's accident occurred at 7.40pm on Friday, October 15.

The driver of the car who struck her was not charged with any offence.

Since the accident, the highway authorities have cut back some trees in the area and added extra lighting to improve visibility, but Mrs Hopkins feels this is not enough.

Around 30 friends and family from her school and neighbourhood attended the birthday memorial event.

They also shared a sloth chocolate cake with the candles blown out my Mya's six-year-old sister, Ava.

Miss Hopkins said: "It was a hard day because it was our first one without her."

Commenting on life without Mya, she added: "I just try and stay strong for my little one and her dad.

"I have days when it's really quite hard but I deal with it in my own time.

"I stand and talk to her in the house."

An inquest into Mya's death opened on October 29 at County Hall in Maidstone.

A coroner was told she died of a head injury at the scene of the collision.

The inquest was adjourned until April 4 and will be held at Archbishop's Palace in Maidstone.

To sign the petition, click here.