Campaigners have accused a council of mis-spending £3 million of funding set aside for cycling improvements.

Ian Davey of Brighton and Hove's Bike For Life and Tony Green of Bricycles, say Brighton and Hove City Council is failing to work with them, breaking its promises and being slow to improve cycle routes.

The council was awarded £1.5 million over three years by Government-funded Cycle England to become a beacon of cycling success for the country.

The council won Cycle Demonstration Town (CDT) status in October last year, providing it matched the funding.

Campaigners say they are dismayed the council has spent more than half of its CDT cash on employing travel advisers to knock on doors around Portslade and Hangleton.

A council spokeswoman said that speaking to 10,000 households had been a "good use of money" and that early figures indicate a 71 per cent rise in cycling in the Valley Road area of Portslade.

Mr Davey said: "The massive budget for this personal travel planning involved six full-time staff and a team of door-knockers but we remain to see evidence this has brought about any significant increase in cycling, or that it's a cost-effective way to do so."

He said real improvements to cycle routes were more important, together with a cycle school of excellence which was proposed but "appears to have been dropped". He was also unhappy with the council's "lack of consultation".

A council spokeswoman said a school of excellence meant cycle officers were able to train cycling instructions from elsewhere in the region and "this process is well under way."

She dismissed the complaints as "a few minor disagreements with certain individuals".

Councillor Gill Mitchell, said: "The chairman of Cycle England himself says we're doing very well."