Brighton could return to its past to help solve town centre traffic problems if campaigners have their way.

The Campaign for a Better Brighton and Hove wants the council to introduce electric trams based on the system which opened in Croydon earlier this year.

It says there could be important implications for the towns, which suffer from severe traffic congestion.

The campaign wants the council to include proposals for a tram system in its local plan and is urging people to read it and make comments before November 6.

Spokesman Russell Hicks said: "We are in favour of efforts to reduce pollution but do not believe this plan has the right answer. We are in danger of throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

"Our main concerns are with the planned reduction of road space and its implications for our fragile economy.

"Good jobs are scarce in Brighton. One in five are on benefit. Our unemployment rate is double the national average and six times that of surrounding towns in Sussex.

"Any fundamental changes in the way our town functions, which would have a detrimental effect on commerce, should, we think, be subject to detailed economic impact assessments which the plan does not include."

Trams used to run in Brighton between 1901 and 1939 on routes radiating from the town centre. They were replaced by trolley buses which operated until 1961.

Since then, there have been several studies on how a modern tram system could be introduced in Brighton but all have foundered because of the cost.

In the Nineties, a mini-tram system was tried out in New Road. Although it worked satisfactorily, council transport experts felt it would not be sufficiently robust for a busy town centre.