A DRIVER seen swigging from a can of Stella while at the wheel of a 40-tonne petrol tanker, has been disqualified from driving for 12 months.

Christopher Grainger, 56, of Doncaster, South Yorkshire, pleaded guilty after being found over the drink drive limit whilst driving an empty petrol tanker on the A19.

He had been making his way from Doncaster to Teesside to fill up the tanker with fuel when he was pulled over by North Yorkshire traffic cops on the A19 at Crathorne, near Stokesley on June 14.

Northallerton magistrates heard this morning (Friday, July 17) how police had been alerted by a member of the public, who reported seeing the driver of a tanker drinking from a can of Stella Artois lager whilst driving.

Katy Barlow, prosecuting, told the court an officer then stopped the vehicle on the busy A-road at about 4.30pm and found two cans of lager in the cab.

“He spoke to the driver who smelt of alcohol and there were two cans of Stella next to the driver’s seat,” she said.

“He failed the roadside breath test and was taken to the police station where a test showed a reading of 40 micrograms over the legal limit of 35 micrograms.”

The court heard Grainger had no previous convictions and had worked as a driver for the past 12 years, driving an average of about 90,000 miles a year, until he was invited to tender his resignation following his arrest.

He had brought the two cans to drink after the journey, but during the drive felt thirsty and “succumbed to the temptation” to drink them. Had his breath test reading been one microgram lower, it would have been unlikely any further action would have been taken.

Grainger was disqualified for a period of 12 months and ordered to pay a fine and court costs totalling £365.

Chair of the magistrates, John Seymour told Grainger: “You have pleaded guilty for this offence which is almost made worse because of your many years of experience as a driver and because of the responsibility you have in driving a vehicle which had the potential to cause enormous danger to other road users because of its size and weight.

“However, as was pointed out, you’re at the very bottom of the scale in terms of micrograms and we accept that there were only the two cans of lager in the vehicle, so in light of the circumstances surrounding the situation, we are going to keep the disqualification to a minimum despite that it was a very big vehicle.”