A big Brighton welcome to the Tuk-Tuks. I wish them all the best and, along with family and friends, will certainly use them.

They appear to offer a safe, convenient and fun way to travel and, at £2.50 per journey from convenient stop-off points within Brighton and Hove, would seem to be very good value.

Is this why cabbies are drafting a legal protest letter to Brighton and Hove City Council?

I can't be the only Brighton resident to be unimpressed with the service our taxis offer and the prices they charge.

During the day, things are relatively straightforward but try to get a taxi in the evenings and it is a different matter - there just aren't enough available.

Ring or queue for a cab from 10pm onwards and you are in the lap of the gods - you may get to the front of the queue at one of the taxi ranks eventually, or get through on the phone, only to be told, "about ten to 15 minutes" by an overworked and harrassed-sounding dispatcher who is doing their best.

Then again, you may not get through at all, or be told, "An hour's wait". As for hailing hackney cabs in the street during the evening, this has always been confusing - some stop but more often they don't.

Why can't mini-cabs be allowed to stop, too?

Individual taxi drivers are always courteous and helpful under what must often be stressful conditions.

However, in general, the taxis' service and value-for-money are not good enough and I object to their attempt to deny us, the fare-paying customers, the opportunity to take our business elsewhere if we wish.

-Pete Gillman, Brighton