Brighton and Hove should charge motorists driving into the city centre to combat increasing gridlock, regional transport chiefs have warned.

Brighton and Hove City Council must consider congestion charging or prove beyond doubt it can reduce traffic.

The South-East England Regional Assembly (SEERA) said charging had a crucial role to play in cutting congestion.

Politicians and business leaders reacted angrily last year when a Government-backed study supported proposals to make drivers pay to enter busy parts of the city.

The issue has resurfaced with SEERA's draft regional transport strategy, which said areas such as Brighton and Hove should consider charging initiatives in detail.

But council leader Ken Bodfish said charges would not work unless there was major investment in other transport projects, such as park-and-ride schemes and new bus or tram services.

He said: "We have ruled out congestion charging at the moment.

"We will examine it in detail if we have to, of course, but I am confident we will come up with the answer it will only work if there is a package of other improvements."

Tory opposition leader Brian Oxley said: "I would not countenance it for Brighton and Hove.

"I am really, really hostile to congestion charging. I work in London and I am seeing what is going on with people having to change their whole way of life. It is not on."

Ken Livingstone's charging scheme in central London, due to begin operating next month, is being watched closely as the first big experiment in forcing drivers to pay to enter congested city centres.

Last year's study in Sussex recommended similar charges.

Consultants who drew-up the document also backed higher Parking charges in the city and a tax on workplace parking.

City centre manager Tony Mernagh said the city had already successfully reduced congestion.

He said: "Everyone has to look at it very closely, including Brighton. We have got quite a range of sticks in place now to try to discourage car use so it would be nice if we could have some carrots."

Steve Percy, who chairs the People's Parking Protest group, said: "This is just the thin end of the wedge for the motorist. Any extra burden at the moment is not going to be welcome."

Martin Tugwell, head of regional transport planning, said councils should decide their own traffic reduction policies but they had to be honest about the scale of the problem and how to reduce congestion.

He said: "You cannot carry on as we have in the past. You cannot carry on trying to build your way out of the problem because it is not going to be successful and, if it is not successful, we will actually stymie economic growth."

Transport Secretary Alistair Darling will decide what parts of the proposed SEERA strategy to adopt later this year.