Police officers patrolling the Sussex streets on inline skates may sound far-fetched.

It was an idea that began with a joke email to a senior officer but ended up being given serious consideration.

Officers would be able to move faster to catch fleeing suspects, especially along seafront promenades where cyclists flout riding bans.

Some blade skates are quickly retractable and would allow officers to stand on their own two feet when confronting suspects.

The idea has not taken hold and currently sits on a back-burner, but other new concepts, some considered off-the-wall, have been introduced.

Police are trialling "cyber-cycles" with flashing lights, sirens on handlebars and cameras in their helmets.

Officers have been kitted out with four of the custom-built bikes, each costing £2,000.

Critics laughed at the idea but in their first few days they have led to ten arrests.

The bikes can travel at up to 45mph or go off-road, and riders can film villains and crime scenes.

Their cycle helmets are fitted with mini video cameras which transmit signals to a recorder fitted in the rear saddlebag.

Ordinary mountain bike patrols are now common sights in the city as officers weave in and out of traffic along congested roads.

Raising the profile and efficiency of the police has been the major driving forces behind many changes.

The force has brought in two new-style patrol cars in the Chichester-Bognor area. The Ford Mondeos have high-visibility "battenburg" markings.

But police haven't forgotten old-fashioned means of transport. There are moves in Brighton and Hove, from both police and some politicians, to bring back horse patrols.

Mounted patrols were trialled for two weeks in Hove and despite leaving a few deposits in the road they were well received by the public.

They were considered worthwhile, too. In one incident, mounted officers helped save a colleague from a knife-wielding attacker.

Witnesses saw Sergeant Andy Bishop charge at full gallop on his horse Taunton Dean when he spotted the man threatening a colleague.

Sgt Bishop and his colleague used their horses, on loan from Avon and Somerset police, to pin the man against a wall and made an arrest.

There was also positive reaction in West Street, Brighton, from club owners and doormen who felt they acted as a deterrent to hooligans and rowdy drunks.

Intimidation on late-night buses has largely been wiped out by police "riding shotgun" and travelling on the most troublesome services.

But it is not just police transport that is being revolutionised.

Officers in Hove have borrowed military-style night-vision telescopes to watch for car villains from rooftops.

It follows an outbreak of car crime in the Hangleton area.

New expandable batons have replaced traditional truncheons and whistles have been succeeded by radios and mobile phones.

The introduction of pepper sprays means police now carry more equipment than ever before.

To help with the load, rucksacks are being used by some officers. Besides lightening loads around waists they bring an added benefit.

There is enough room inside to carry sandwiches, flasks and paperwork, enabling officers to sit on park benches, have their lunch and fill in forms.

That means they don't have to travel back to their stations and can remain in public view.

Another way of making police more visible is holding senior officers' meetings away from police stations.

One non-confidential discussion held recently in a cafe on Hove seafront was interrupted.

Chief Inspector Stuart Harrison, second-in-command in Hove, went outside and issued a ticket to a cyclist he spotted riding illegally along the promenade. He returned with the words: "Now, where were we?"

A meeting in a cafe in North Street, Brighton, on Thursday produced a similar result.

Officers had finished their discussion and were outside chatting when a fleeing shoplifter ran straight into the arms of Chief Inspector Kul Verma. The man turned out to be wanted by police in Bristol.

The pace of change within the force is moving more rapidly than ever before.

It is difficult to know from which direction the next innovation will come, but The Argus has learned of one idea being considered.

Putting community beat officers on motor scooters will enable them to travel round their patches quicker and again raise their profile.

As one force bright spark put it: "If they come to Brighton, with its historic connection with rockers, bikes, mods and motor scooters, will bobbies get nicknamed mod-cops?"