I thought we lived in a democracy - 350 names opposing the cycleway?

What happened to the 1,000-name petition presented to Worthing Borough Council by members of Vocal two years ago, asking the council to provide, in line with government recommendations, safe cycling and leisure facilities which included a seafront cycle path?

Anyway, well done, the council, for putting forward the much-needed seafront cycleway.

While on the subject, the Department for Transport has released some revealing statistics about the danger presented to pedestrians by cyclists.

The number of people seriously injured in collisions between cyclists and pedestrians in the UK has nearly halved in the past five years: 57 in 2001, 65 in 2000, 75 in 1999, 85 in1998 and 90 in 1997.

This data includes both those who were detained in hospital as in-patients and those who suffered a range of injuries but were not detained.

We have all seen the rabid anti-cycling articles which have sensationalised this issue in the Press in recent months.

Given the sensitivity about the issue of mixing cycles and pedestrians, it is useful to see both the scale of the figures and the direction in which they are heading.

No one is denying pedestrians feel endangered by cyclists at times but it is very useful to use the figures as a way to establish reality rather than rely on emotions.

It is a shame there are no statistics on pedestrians stepping out in front of cycles because they did not bother to look before leaving the kerb.

And we all know what level of danger those same pedestrians present to cyclists when they climb behind the wheel of their metal boxes: 22,923 cyclists were killed or injured in road accidents in 1998, pedal cyclists being the fourth-largest group of casualties after car occupants, pedestrians and motorcycle riders. Of cyclist casualties in 1998, 30 per cent were children.

Cyclist casualties represented 16 per cent of all child casualties, compared with just six per cent of adult casualties.

So let's have proper cycle lanes built and start getting out on our bikes more - the world would be a far happier, cleaner place.

-Mike Brampton, Brook Barn Way, Goring