A DRINK driver with no licence was arrested after crashing his car into a metal fence at Worcester Racecourse.

The uninsured learner driver, who was driving with 'L' plates, did not have a full driving licence, blew 99mcg of alcohol in 100ml of breath, close to three times the legal limit of 35mcg.

He crashed the car into the fence in Croft Road, Worcester at 3.15am this morning.

The 30-year-old driver was arrested for driving with excess alcohol, driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence and driving without third party insurance.

He has since been charged with all three offences and is due to appear at Worcester Magistrates Court next month.

The incident comes just a day after West Mercia Police launched a campaign to stop people driving under the influence of drink or drugs.

Officers have been manning a stand at the Victorian Christmas Fayre in Worcester to try to educate motorists and persuade them to sign a pledge never to drink or take drugs before driving.

The driver, who was uninjured, was arrested and was today in custody at Worcester Police Station.

The once handsome fence is badly bent and buckled with a yawning gap where the car had rammed into it.

A broken wing mirror and shards of the car number plate were strewn across the crash site.

A spokesman for the South Worcestershire Local Policing Area at West Mercia Police said: "He is lucky there were no pedestrians around when he mounted the pavement."

The car which shows L plates suffered damaged on the driver's side.

Ironically police had only launched their #dontdrinkanddrive campaign only yesterday.

A police spokesman said: "One driver didn't take notice!"

According to information from the Sentencing Guidelines Council the driver, if convicted, faces a ban of between 23 and 29 months (for the 90mcg to 119mcg range).

If it is his second drink drive offence in 10 years the ban, upon conviction, could be between 36 and 52 months.

It is also likely he will be made subject to a low to high level community order.

Cllr Derek Prodger, a director at Worcester Racecourse, managed by the Arena Racing Company (ARC), said he was relieved no-one was seriously hurt in the crash and said if it happened during the racing season they may well have had to cancel the racing as potentially it would not have been safe to race.

He said: "The racing is now finished for the season so it can be repaired. I imagine it will be an insurance claim. It could have caused chaos on the racecourse in the summer.

"We can't race until the track is safe. We have to make sure the track is safe for racing."

However, because there is no racing until next May Mr Prodger said Worcester City Council, which he said owned the fence, had the time to carry out repairs.

Cllr Prodger added: "I don't think people should drink and drive. Pick up the phone. Call a taxi or get a lift. There is no need to drink and drive anymore.

"It is a strong fence. He must have been doing something pretty extraordinary to go through that."