A DRUNK jockey drove his car for miles on three wheels - before stopping for a nap in the middle of the road.

One wheel of Peter Lebigre's Volvo was completely missing - which had left a two mile trail of destruction in the surface of the A-road where he was caught by an off-duty cop.

The officer found him fast asleep, slumped at the wheel in the middle of the road, and the jockey then tried to drive further, but the officer confiscated his keys until back-up could arrive.

A breathalyser test then showed he had 43 microgrammes of alcohol on 100 ml of breath. The legal limit is 30.

When taken into custody Lebigre, 28, of Cousins Way, Pulborough – was found to be in possession of cannabis.

Lebigre admitted drink driving and possession of the drug at Worthing Magistrates' Court on Friday.

He was banned from driving for three years and ordered to complete 80 hours unpaid work.

A spokesman for Sussex Police said: "At about 5.15am on February 18 , police were called regarding a broken down Volvo C70 on the A281 at Rudgwick, near Horsham.

"On arrival at the scene, they discovered the front nearside wheel was missing and the rear nearside tyre was completely flat. This had caused extensive damage to the road surface.

"The vehicle was found by an off-duty police officer, who noticed the driver was asleep. After he roused him, the driver attempted to drive off, but the off-duty officer took his keys and held onto them until police arrived.

"The driver was required to undergo a roadside breath test, which he failed.

"He was subsequently charged with driving with 43mcg of alcohol per 100ml of breath in his system and possession of cannabis."

Police have warned drivers that alcohol can have different affects on different people - dependent on their size, age and what they have eaten. Last month The Argus reported the case of a driver banned after claiming to have drunk just a single can of Kronenbourg lager.

Campaigners are calling for the drink drive limit to be lowered.

Department for Transport figures showed a rise in the number fatalities from drink driving in the UK during 2016.

The drink drive limit in England, Wales and Northern Ireland is currently one of the highest in Europe at 80mg in every 100ml of blood.

Safety campaigners want this figure to fall to 50mg to be in line with Scotland’s drink drive limit, which was lowered in December 2014.

Alcohol safety expert at AlcoDigital. Suzannah Robin, who works with corporate and government organisations and councils to implement their alcohol testing policies for staff, said:

“It makes no sense whatsoever to keep the drink drive limit at its current level.

“One of the arguments against lowering the drink drive limit is the view that most accidents are caused by people who would flout the rules regardless of the law. This attitude simply doesn’t stack up. A lower limit sends a powerful message that drink driving is dangerous.

People in Sussex can report drink or drug drivers by texting 65999.