Getting people out of cars and onto the streets has become a major focus for Brighton and Hove City Council. In a bid to boost fitness and reduce congestion in the city centre, the council has set ten people the challenge of walking 10,000 steps every day for ten weeks. Despite blisters, wet and windy weather and flagging motivation, seven weeks into the challenge the ambling ambassadors are still walking tall. Reporter Jess Bauldry hit the streets to speak to five walkers, including a great grandmother, a mother and toddler and a soon-to-be-married couple.

Travel around Brighton and Hove and between the bumper to bumper traffic and exhaust-choked air, a revolution is underfoot - or on foot as it happens.

People are shunning cars and buses and pounding the pavement to get around, save money and improve their fitness.

As one of the country's smallest cities, the seaside resort lends itself well to walkers. But, while picturesque walks are not in short supply, motivation often is.

That is why Brighton and Hove City Council is taking steps to get people moving.

Back in May, it launched the first 10,000-step challenge, offering participants a chance to win a weekend break in the Malvern Hills, donated by ethical travel company Responsible Travel.

The simple programme follows a project developed in Japan in 1965. To get people thinking about leading an active lifestyle, it recommended people get at least 30 minutes of exercise a day. The Brighton and Hove adaptation suggests 10,000 steps which could cover up to five miles, depending on the stride of participants.

The scheme forms part of the council's Journey On sustainable transport website, providing information on alternative transport to encourage people to ditch the car.

Katherine Travis, who came up with the scheme, said: "I wasn't surprised people wanted to get involved. Brighton and Hove is such a walkable city. I was more surprised by the range of people who got involved.

"We've got people with children, people who work and those who don't work.

10,000 steps is always quoted as a good distance for healthy activity."

More information about participants in the 10,000 step challenge can be found in their blogs on www.journeyon.co.uk.

Alison Leitch, 34
Giving up the car was hard work for Alison Leitch. The lawyer, who works at Brighton and Hove City Council, says she was not an exercise fan before accepting the challenge. She said: "I'm basically a couch potato. That's my natural state. I didn't do any physical activities beforehand. I drove to work and home again and used my car all the time to go to the shops.

"I signed up because I wanted something physical."

Alison is walking to and from work and hopes the brisk stroll will prepare her well for a charity run in aid of Crohn's disease later this year. More accustomed to the stage than the street, Alison is also an amateur comedian, who has performed at Brighton's Komedia and a number of pubs.

She said: "I hope this provides me with some interesting material. Everyone loves a journey. Hopefully, I will go from couch potato to walking maestro."

Francesca Ferrari, 39, and Charlie, 2
When mother of two Francesa Ferrari signed up for the 10,000 steps challenge, it was not just her life that would change.

Her two-year-old son, Charlie, unwittingly found himself taking part too. He became the youngest participant when Francesca decided to ditch the double pushchair, forcing him to walk with her.

The full-time mother said: "It's given me the confidence of getting rid of the double buggy. I don't think I did it too hastily and I think I'm inspiring other mums to do the same. Everything takes much longer because I'm with children and I've shortened my strides because I'm walking with Charlie."

Francesca says she has always been active and ran every day before she had children. She said: "Having had children I've had that taken away from me. I'm with one child all of the time. So I have to involve them in everything I do. As a result, I don't really think about it as exercise."

Elfie Fell, 31, and Jonny Gloster, 33
Soon-to-be-married couple Elfie and Jonny are so keen to save money for their big day in September, they have shunned wheeled transport for walking.

To help with their budgeting the couple moved into a studio flat in Hove and say they have saved a fortune on transport.

Elfie, who works for the BBC in Brighton, said: "It's partly to get toned for the wedding and save money.

"I'm of average fitness but if there's an easier option I will normally take it. I've been really strict and have said I will walk everywhere. I've even started walking the long way round to get to places."

The couple's favourite walk together is along the South Downs at Ditchling Beacon, where Jonny proposed to Elfie.

After the wedding, the couple has pledged to walk the entire coast of Britain over the course of their lifetimes.

James Harris, 19
Students normally get a bad press for loafing around but James Harris is making the most of every minute in Brighton.

The drummer has taken a Gap year to study at the Brighton Institute of Modern Music before reading Biology at Durham University.

Originally from Chesterfield, he is eager to soak up Brighton's atmosphere by walking through it.

He said: "I thought I'm only here for a year. It might give me more of an incentive to wander around Brighton.

"I just wanted to see the city and save cash. I must have clocked up thousands of steps by now. The hardest part is when the weather is bad. If it's raining I tend to run wherever I need to go."

Audrey Smith
A 75-year-old great-grandmother could be forgiven for not knowing what a carbon footprint is.

But Audrey Smith certainly does not adhere to any such stereotypes.

The clued-up retired art teacher rose to the 10,000 steps challenge earlier this year to show older people could still be active. She said: "I took part mainly just to show people you don't have to sit down and knit just because you're getting old.

"So many people use that as an excuse. I'm not condemning people for staying at home because some people cannot walk. "I've been blessed with good health and I think it's worth looking after your body."

Audrey fits the walks into her busy social schedule by doing half the quota of steps before breakfast.

Rising at 6.45am, she heads for Fiveways, then onto Preston Park, St Ann's Well Gardens and along the seafront. She said: "I do like walking but if I didn't feel like it before, I wouldn't go for such a long walk. I've stuck to it well so far. I'm very proud of myself."

Are you taking part in the 10,000 steps challenge? Tell us your story below.