Driver so drunk he didn’t know he was on the wrong side of road

Officers driving along Columbia Drive in Worthing came bumper to bumper with the Vauxhall Astra of Angus McKenzie at 7pm on 7 June.

When they put on the blue lights of their patrol car the 50-year-old stopped in front of them.

A police source said: “He seemed surprised to be told he was on the wrong side of the road, even though the sides of the carriageway are separated by a wide grassed central reservation.”

McKenzie, of Normandy Drive, was tested and shown to have 107 microgrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of his breath - more than three times the 35 microgrammes legal limit.

He pleaded guilty to drink-driving when he appeared at Worthing Magistrates’ Court on June 25.

He has since been banned from driving for 23 months, ordered to do 80 hours of community service and told to pay £235 costs and a £60 victim surcharge.

Chief Inspector Phil Nicholas, of Sussex and Surrey roads policing unit, said: “The fact that McKenzie did not realise he was on the wrong side of the road tells you all you need to know about whether he was fit to drive.

“It is fortunate that it was a police patrol that found him - if someone had turned out of a side road into McKenzie’s path there could have been a serious accident.

“If you see someone who you think could be drink or drug-driving please call us urgently. It could prevent someone being killed or seriously injured.”

A total of 35 people have so far been convicted of offences as part of the campaign.

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