Police are cracking down on seafront cyclists who stray from cycle lanes after a young boy lost a tooth in a collision.

And on the first day of action, officers stopped dozens of riders who ignored Brighton and Hove City Council rules restricting them to the designated lanes.

Two were given fixed penalty tickets when they refused to accept warnings not to stray from the lanes in the future.

The crackdown comes after Hove councillors Denise Cobb and Brian Oxley told police they had been inundated with complaints from pedestrians.

Acting Sergeant Karen Pirrie said: "There have been a number of accidents recently, including a young boy who lost a tooth.

"We decided to crackdown on the problem after Westbourne ward councillors raised it at their last surgery.

"We put officers on the seafront to speak to cyclists who do not use the marked cycle routes and cause a danger to pedestrians.

"At this time of year there are a lot of elderly people and families with young children using the promenade.

"We want to get the message across that if cyclists continue to ignore the regulations they will be given fixed penalty tickets."

Councillor Cobb welcomed the blitz and said she had received more complaints than ever about the problem this year.

She said: "More people are using the seafront because of the warmer weather and that is bringing them into conflict with cyclists more often.

"A young boy was knocked over recently by one cyclist and lost a tooth as a result.

"He wasn't with his parents at the time and the people he was with were more concerned about getting him to a dentist than taking the cyclist's details.

"On the other hand, cyclists also complain about pedestrians walking in the cycle lanes on the seafront without checking first to see if there are bikes around.

"However, we are pleased the police are cracking down and hope they will continue to do so."

Sergeant Dave Bettis said: "Officers issued two £30 tickets to riders not using the cycle lanes on Wednesday.

"We intend to continue giving tickets to cyclists who ignore the regulations and pose a danger to the safety of pedestrians on the seafront."