I smile sadly when I read the arguments about the annual London-to-Brighton cycle ride.

What a contrast to "Happy Mosel Day", an event I came across by chance in Germany recently.

On that Sunday, about 200km (125 miles) of the main A-roads on both banks along the picturesque river Mosel are closed to all motorised traffic and given over to bicycles and other man-powered forms of transport, such as in-line skates, trikes, rollerblades and so on.

This causes none of the irate reactions the Brighton run evokes.

Local motorists plan ahead and place their cars near one of the open feeder roads if they feel they will need them. Other traffic is diverted with no problems and no jams.

Every town and village along the way offers stalls with food and drink, most wine growers open their doors for you to sample their produce, together with home-cooked snacks, and there is entertainment, music, bunting everywhere and lots of beer tents, too.

But there is no drunkenness, no trouble, no rowdiness, no crime.

Everyone just enjoys themselves, from the toddler on his first minibike to the great-grandparents gliding along on their Thirties tandem.

You ride as much or as little as you like and are able to. There is very little organisation or officialdom, no stewards and very few police. Again in sharp contrast to Brighton, the local railway puts on 30-plus extra trains and transports bicycles free. Not to be outdone, the local bus company has specially-adapted cyclists' buses which have seats at the front and cycle storage in the rear.

The day after the event, in May 2005, I opened the local paper and read the report on the event by the regional police - Estimated 120,000 cyclists on the road.

Accidents: a small handful of scrapes and bruises.

Crime reported: none.

Arrests: none.

Police on duty: 27 (to patrol 125 miles, set up and dismantle all local road closures and diversions).

I repeat, 27 police on duty, not 270 as would be needed here. Where have we gone wrong in Britain?

-Werner Gattiker, Hassocks