MAY I first congratulate you on being the only local newspaper that gave adequate coverage to the visit of the eminent Prof Helmut Holzapfel of Kassel University, Germany. Yours should be the paper in the library files for future generations.

Having said that, it did seem that what he said to you was very similar to what Prof John Whitelegg often says. I believe Prof Whitelegg has spent some study leave in Germany. Both emphasise long term ideals and not improving life for those in Lancaster now - who might be dead in thirty years.

He echoes the no ring roads, no supermarkets, get on your bike message of Transport 2000.

Sadly, in some places Helmut reveals that his Lancaster hosts briefed him badly. He says "lorries should be made to stick to certain routes." They already do and so do cars. The only route is the Transport 2000- Green Party choice just round the edge of the pedestrian centre because every other road is full of humps.

For 18 years, in liaison with each main political party's flavour of the month, the green syndrome have used every trick in the book to prevent the obvious "certain route" for lorries to "stick to."

That is the route across the Luneside wastelands and directly to Heysham and Morecambe. However, perhaps the aspect of his views which most question the cross channel applicability of his knowledge is his complete lack of reference to the last two decades of downgrading pedestrian facilities in the UK. Of course, he has no knowledge of this, because it doesn't happen in Germany. Anyone who visits our twin town, Rendsburg, will not find German footways handed to cyclists.

They will not trip every 20 yards on a broken and sinking flagstone. They will not find pavements blocked with illegal A boards. No, they will find wide and adequate segregated footways and cycleways, with cyclists politely dismounting when they need to use a footway. Finally, I wonder if Helmut's green hosts asked him about the German's ecological need for 200km/h autobahn-cruising gas guzzlers?

Michael Jackson

Hest Bank

Pedestrian Association.