A HINCHINGBROOKE Hospital podiatrist will have to cover his 325-square-mile patch on a bicycle or by public transport after pleading guilty to drink-driving. Darren Robert Martin, 26, of Alexandra House, Hinchingbrooke, was found to have had 86 microgramm

A HINCHINGBROOKE Hospital podiatrist will have to cover his 325-square-mile patch on a bicycle or by public transport after pleading guilty to drink-driving.

Darren Robert Martin, 26, of Alexandra House, Hinchingbrooke, was found to have had 86 microgrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath - more than twice the legal limit of 35 - when his car was stopped by police on Huntingdon ring road, the town's magistrates heard.

He was banned from driving for 20 months, fined £250 with a £15 victim surcharge and ordered to pay £50 prosecution costs. The ban will be reduced by a quarter if he successfully completes a drink-drive rehabilitation course.

His solicitor, Nend Spasojevic, said his client had been to St Ives for a meal with which he had not intended to drink, but he decided to have some alcohol.

He had driven home only because of a previous assault in the town, when his car had been stolen.

The ban would cause significant difficulty for Martin, who had to cover health centres, doctors' surgeries and residential and nursing homes across 325 square miles, Mr Spasojevic told the court.