A MILNATHORT man who drove while nearly five times the legal limit was yesterday banned from the road for four and a half years at Perth Sheriff Court.

Mark McKenzie (41) weaved his way down miles of road in Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire before coming to a halt.

He was followed for much of the way by a pair of motorists who were so concerned by the quality of his driving that they contacted the police.

McKenzie first came to their attention at around 5.45 in the evening as he drove straight over a roundabout without giving way to other traffic.

As the motorists followed he was seen to be weaving across the roadway, both on open road and through villages on his route.

After the vehicle came to a halt, the witnesses got out of their vehicle to talk to the accused.

They formed the opinion he was heavily under the influence and noted that he smelt strongly of alcohol.

“Police officers arrived on the scene at around 6.15pm, meaning that there had been around half-an-hour of the type of driving described,” said depute fiscal Robbie Brown.

“Not surprisingly, given the reading, they too could detect the smell of alcohol.

McKenzie, of Reid Crescent, admitted that on January 14 on various roads in Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire, he drove a car with excess alcohol (164 mics).

He also admitted driving without due care or attention, failing to give way to other traffic at a roundabout, repeatedly swerving over to the opposite carriageway and causing the vehicle to cross over and straddle solid white lines.

McKenzie’s solicitor told the court that at the time of the incident his client had not wanted to believe he had a problem with alcohol.

However, he added that his client had since had time to reflect upon his problem, adding that his client had been “too ashamed” to confide in anyone.

He called on Sheriff Lindsay Foulis to consider placing his client on probation to enable him to get help.

That appeal fell on deaf ears however, and together with the ban, McKenzie was ordered to carry out 200 hours community service and fined £250.