What the MP should really be asking...

I WRITE in response to your article in the Worthing Herald about proposals to convert the ilex 'avenue of trees' into an all-weather, mud-free cycle lane.

I drive a van, car and cycle wherever I can to save using a vehicle. I also enjoy walking.

Why cannot cyclists and walkers share a facility that belongs to neither group of people; a few simple rules and perhaps separate pathways, vee posts to prevent the entry of motorcycles and cars. I know you are always going to get the few irresponsible people who will break the rules, but this happens in everything we do. This goes for walkers as well. The very few cycle lanes we do have around here also have a pavement for pedestrians, but I often find them walking in the cycle lane.

However, the ilex bridleway is on the Ordnance Survey map as a bridleway not a footpath, so as far as I am aware we are allowed to ride cycles and horses along it.

I use what I call a 'polite bell' so as not to make walkers jump when approaching them from behind.

The cycle lane in High Street is just a joke unless it is the start of a much larger scheme: does anyone know?

It is so important to try to encourage our youngsters to take themselves around the place, and it has to be as safe as possible - being chauffeured in cars is not the answer.