A DRIVER who was twice over the legal drink-driving limit caused a head-on crash while speeding down the wrong side of the road at around 60 to 80 mph.

Alex Turner had drunk 'four or more' pints of cider before causing the crash in Halliwell Road, Halliwell, where the speed limit is 30mph, late at night on February 3.

The 22-year-old was given a six-month sentence, suspended for two years, for dangerous driving and driving while under the influence of alcohol at Bolton Crown Court today.

The court heard how Andrew Twist, a bus driver, was walking from the Last Orders pub in Halliwell Road close to the Claremont Arms, when he heard a car driving along the road at speed.

When Mr Twist turned around, the car had passed him and he estimated that it was travelling at 60 to 80mph.

Turner was driving towards Bolton and decided to overtake another car at speed. Mr Twist said he never saw the brake lights on the Audi.

While overtaking, Turner smashed into a another car being driven in the opposite direction before also hitting the car he was overtaking.

Claire Thomas, prosecuting, said the front end of Turner's silver Audi 'disintegrated' in the crash and all three cars were extensively damaged.

Turner managed to get himself out of his car, but was then assaulted by two men in a nearby street until Mr Twist took him to a nearby pub for safety.

Police, the ambulance service and the fire service all attended the scene.

Officers saw that Turner, of Pentland Terrace, Halliwell, appeared to be drunk and was 'slurring' and could not get his words straight and was also unsteady on his feet.

When a sample was taken, there was 74 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 ml of breath, more than double the legal limit of 35.

Nobody was seriously injured in the crash, but the driver of the vehicle that Turner was overtaking had to be cut free by the fire service and had multiple bruises and chest pains.

The other driver left the scene before emergency services arrived.

The New Curry House takeaway was hit in the crash and suffered around £35,000 worth of damage.

It had been closed for around 12 months for renovation following an arson attack and was almost ready to reopen when the incident happened.

Nicholas Ross, defending Turner, said he was of 'impeccable character' and a number of references supporting this were read by Judge Timothy Stead.

He added that Turner had profound remorse for his actions that night and he still struggled to explain it.

Mr Ross said: "He said he wished he could take it all back. It hurts him to think that he could have seriously hurt or killed other road users."

Mr Ross added that Turner had been drinking with friends before getting behind the wheel and that he had been struggling with the recent break-up of a relationship and financial problems.

Speaking after the sentencing, Mizan Ali, who runs the New Curry House, said that it had not been able to reopen as a result of the damage the building suffered in the crash.

Mr Ali said that it was about three months away from re-opening when the car smashed into it in February and is still six weeks away from opening the doors again as a result of the setback.

He said: "He caused a lot of damage, it is going to be six weeks. It is a very difficult time. Every day we are losing customers."

Judge Stead gave Turner a six-month prison sentence for both offences, to run concurrently and suspended them both for two years.

He was also banned from driving for two years and was also given a curfew to run for 60 days and ordered to be at his home address between 8pm and 6am.