Here city councillor Jayne Bennett and Hove resident Leonie Petrarca try out the journey women will have to take if breast cancer services are moved out of Brighton.

The Argus is asking you to support its campaign against proposals to transfer the Nigel Porter Breast Care Unit from Brighton and Hove to the Princess Royal Hospital in Haywards Heath.

The two women, who back the campaign, say patients could miss appointments because of the distance they would have to travel.

They travelled by public transport to an imaginary 9am appointment at the Princess Royal last Friday to see what patients could expect on their journey.

We both left home in darkness having arranged to meet at the bus stop opposite the Grenadier in Hangleton, Hove, at 6.45am as if we really were attending a 9am appointment.

We agreed that neither of us had slept very well because of worries about waking up in time. Imagine what it would be like if we really did have to go to an appointment.

The bus company had been very helpful and provided us with suitable bus times and routes to allow us to arrive on time, although it was not so easy to plan the return trip as we were uncertain about how long we would be at the hospital.

However, at every stage of our journey there was something unexpected or complicated to cope with and we couldn't imagine how someone alone, unwell or less able to get around might manage, especially if they were also worried about the appointment ahead.

We boarded the 6.51am 5B to Brighton centre to meet the connecting bus service to Haywards Heath. The journey time of 20 minutes left just five minutes before our next bus was due to depart.

In Brighton, there was an unexpected change of bus stop as the usual one was out of service and it took us a couple of minutes to locate the right one.

With moments to spare, we found it and caught the 7.15am 770 bus that was to take us to the centre of Haywards Heath.

As the bus started to fill up we struck up a conversation with another passenger who told us the service was "unreliable, often late and sometimes not running at all".

Another passenger we talked to had written to the bus company very recently to complain.

Eventually, after nearly an hour travelling, we got off the bus in South Road, Haywards Heath. We were in need of a loo, which we had to search for.

Next, we were faced with the option of a 15 to 20-minute walk up a very steep hill or another bus journey to reach our destination. Since one of us found walking difficult we opted for the bus.

While one of us tried to make sense of the timetable and watched for the bus the other called into a baker's shop to ask which bus we needed and when the next one left.

Eventually we caught the 30A, which took ten minutes to deliver us to the gates of the Princess Royal. A short walk through the grounds and we arrived outside the main entrance at exactly 8.50 am.

Total single journey time: two hours and ten minutes.

Cost: £4.70 Our return journey began at 10.20am. An out-patient would probably spend longer at the hospital. What's more, after her appointment and any investigations she would be feeling tired and not very happy about facing the long trek back to Brighton and Hove.

We decided to make the return journey partly by train in the hope of finding it less arduous than by bus.

First we had to walk along a narrow footpath down a steep hill to the town centre. It took us nearly 15 minutes but could easily take longer, especially for women accompanied by children, pushing a buggy or experiencing walking difficulties or feeling groggy.

Next we caught the 30B bus to the station, a journey of about eight minutes. Finding a long queue at the station ticket office, we decided to buy our ticket from the automatic machine.

But by the time we had managed to fathom how it worked and got it to accept our money, it would have been quicker to wait in the queue.

Then to reach the platform there is a long, steep flight of steps.

One of us needed to use the lift because of a problem knee and a heated discussion followed because the other would not get in the lift.

This was not because of the rubbish on the floor but because of the putrid stench inside.

The stairs were the only option in the end. We finally reached the platform and were glad to sit down for a rest while we waited for the 11.05am train to Hove.

Then confusion followed over the announcements. We had to ask which was the right train and then run at break-neck speed to the front of the train.

It must have been the longest train in the country, as only the front four carriages were for Hove. We finally got on but couldn't find two seats together.

We arrived at Hove station having had more than enough - a succession of journeys on public transport plus lots of walking.

Weary, we gave up and fell into the first available taxi to take us home. Two healthy, fit (except for the knee) females collapsed exhausted in the back of that cab.

Luckily for us, we only had to make the journey once. But many patients would have to repeat the experience several times.

We happened, by chance, to choose a warm, sunny day. Just imagine what it would be like during the cold, rainy, windy, frosty, long, dark weeks of the winter.

We wonder how many women from Brighton and Hove will be deterred from keeping their appointment, perhaps with serious consequences, if faced with a nearly four-hour return journey by public transport, especially if they are elderly, feel unwell or have caring responsibilities.

The Princess Royal Hospital is not accessible to patients and their families and friends who want to visit by public transport.

Yet we have been unable to find any plans on the table at present to address the problem.

A free regular bus link between hospitals is a logical solution but would then probably be stopped in the first cost-cutting exercise.

A project by the Brighton, Hove and Lewes Community Health Council also undertook journeys to the Princess Royal with similar results.

Return journey times ranged from 2hr 5min to 4hr 27min and costs ranged from £2.10 to £8.80 depending on times and concessions available.

The largest centre of population is the city of Brighton and Hove so we need the centre of excellence here where it is accessible to the patients who need it, not a difficult and tiring 15-mile journey away that will cause problems for both patients and their families.

Sign our petition against the proposed move in the Local Issues section of thisisbrightonandhove.co.uk