A SEAFRONT cycle highway should be created all along the coast, a keen rider has suggested.

Peacehaven resident Richard Hutchinson said the steep climb from his home to Brighton on the A259 was off-putting for many cyclists.

So the 40-year-old sales manager has started a petition to extend the Undercliff Walk from Saltdean to Peacehaven so commuters and daytrippers can have an easier ride.

“I’ve been cycling more since lockdown came in and invested in some bikes,” Mr Hutchinson said.

“But the thought of trying to get up and down the hill on the A259 puts me off.

“I just put the bikes in the boot and drive to Saltdean so I can go on the undercliff there.

“But if it was extended to Peacehaven, when the weather’s nice you could quite easily cycle to Brighton if you work there.”

The Argus: Mr Hutchinson hopes extending the Undercliff Walk could help tackle traffic on the A259Mr Hutchinson hopes extending the Undercliff Walk could help tackle traffic on the A259

Mr Hutchinson said the ambitious scheme could relieve pressure on the traffic-choked A259.

“There’s no viable solution to tackling traffic on the A259,” he said.

“Peacehaven just keeps growing, they’re putting more and more houses here.

“When I go back to working and doing the school run it’ll be gridlocked.

“For me to go to Newhaven takes a good half-hour or 45 minutes. I don’t even attempt to go to Brighton.”

He cited the newly pedestrianised Madeira Drive as an example of a popular new cycle lane.

“Everybody loves it and wants to keep it that way,” he said. “People are thinking a bit differently now.

“Now the Government’s dedicating all this money to cycle lanes it would be good to see something done, although this will probably be more expensive.

The Argus: The Undercliff Walk extends from Brighton to SaltdeanThe Undercliff Walk extends from Brighton to Saltdean

“I’m not an avid cyclist, I’m just a dad-of-two who takes bikes out on the trailer. But I’d love to see what people think of my idea.”

Cycling has been in the headlines for much of the pandemic as a mode of transport compatible with social distancing measures.

Brighton and Hove City Council has pedestrianised Madeira Drive during the pandemic. And earlier this month it created larger cycle lanes in Old Shoreham Road temporarily.

To view Mr Hutchinson’s petition visit change.org/connectpeacehaven.