I would like to take issue with the letter from Frans Said about cycling (January 27).

I would say that most cyclists, especially local ones, have cars and insurance cover too.

I have been cycling for over 50 years in the UK and another six since we came to live in the land of my father-in-law’s birth. I also possess heavy goods vehicle and coach driving licences, which I have had since leaving the Navy 22 years ago.

My bike cost the best part of £3,000 so obviously it is insured against damage. And I was lucky to get away without incurring any when recently a motorist took me out and nearly killed me – or worse she could have pinned me to a wall and condemned me to life in a wheelchair –because she was not looking where she was going. Had I not yelled she would have driven straight into the wall.

Said’s point that cyclists look down is the same reason cars (especially on the hill from Għadira Bay to Mellieħa) drive on the white lines (like a Scalextric car the roadside gutters are full of holes.

But although a car tyre would cope if it hit a hole, a bicycle rider would be thrown off if the same happened.

As for using mobiles, I would say that more than 90 per cent of motorists use them while they’re driving around. And unless you have both hands on the steering wheel, you are not in control of your vehicle.

So there are two sides to every coin. If there was a crackdown on reckless overtaking in blind bends and on undertaking on dual carriageways, Malta’s roads might become safer.

For me, when I get back onthe road it’s in Gozo, whichhas better roads and betterdriving etiquette... and a free trip on the ferry makes it a win-win situation.