Chris Rackley (Letters, July 4) joins Victor Meldrew's ranks with his rant about the London to Brighton bike ride.

He claims Brighton "functions every Sunday throughout the year" except the day of the ride and that "the 27,000 cyclists and support vehicles bring Brighton to a halt and not motorists".

I was under the impression Brighton grinds to a halt every day of the week and is regularly gridlocked on sunny weekends throughout summer.

Come off it, Mr Rackley, we all know the majority of vehicles contributing to the traffic jams are nothing to do with the bike ride.

Mr Rackley pontificates that it costs too much for local taxpayers in road signs and policing but much of the road signage and traffic control measures are funded by the £22.50 entry fee all 27,000 cyclists pay.

Thousands of riders were local residents, sponsored by friends, families, work colleagues and businesses also from the area. All these people pay income tax, National Insurance, council tax, VAT, stamp duty, inheritance tax, airport taxes, capital gains tax and road tax.

So spare us the whimsical nonsense about hard-pressed local taxpayers.

The fact is the ride raises about £3 million per year for the British Heart Foundation.

The 27,000 participants ride into Brighton one day a year because we have earned and paid for the right to do so and are equally as entitled to cycle on the roads as Mr Rackley is to drive his car.

The old chestnut that "cyclists cycle on the roads for free" implies cyclists live entirely on social security benefits.

As for the local economy, local coach and lorry hire companies, as well as pubs, cafes, B&Bs and bike shops all benefit from the influx.

The ride may cause additional congestion above the usual level of traffic jams in Brighton but riders still have the support and good cheer of the majority.

The London to Brighton bike ride does exactly what it says on the tin, and long may it continue to do so, paid for, directly and indirectly, by its participants and supporters, whether they live and work in Brighton and Hove or not.

-David Bateup, West Worthing