A CYCLIST who suffered life-changing injuries when he was hit by a drunk motorist has spoken out after it was revealed that drink drivers cause a crash on Dorset’s roads once every four days.

Paul O’Boyle was knocked off his bicycle in Wallisdown Road by driver Harry Whitlock on July 18 2015.

He suffered a bleed on his brain, bruising to his lung and shoulder injuries after being thrown into the air during the crash.

Mr O’Boyle spoke to the Daily Echo after it was revealed that 42 people have died on the roads in crashes where alcohol was a contributory factor since 2010.

In addition, 160 people suffered serious injuries and 390 suffered slight injuries.

In 2015 there were 83 drink-related crashes – one every 4.4 days on average.

Mr O’Boyle said: “I would say to any drunk driver, think about the consequences of your actions.

“I was the victim, but he’s suffered too - he’s in prison and his life has changed forever.

“I can’t bear to imagine what would have happened if he’d hit a child.”

Whitlock, of Fernhill Close in Poole, was sent to prison for 15 months and disqualified from driving for three years and seven months after admitting causing serious injury by dangerous driving and driving with excess alcohol.

PC Jez Strothard, of Dorset Police’s No Excuse team, said drink drivers “pose a threat to us all”.

“Alcohol and drugs can seriously affect a driver’s ability to react quickly and safely, not only to physical hazards they may encounter during the course of their journey but also to the ever-changing road environment,” he said.

“A driver needs to be able to make decisions as to how to negotiate hazards quickly and efficiently. Drink and drugs inhibit the brains ability to process the information the driver needs when developing a driving plan to deal with a hazard.

“The judgement of drivers impaired by drink or drugs will also be affected. For example, they are less likely to be able to accurately assess their vehicle’s speed.”

He added that police are ‘determined’ to reduce the number of people killed and injured by drink drivers.

“Drink and drug driving will not be tolerated and we will employ the full range of tactics to deal with these types of driver that pose a threat to us all. “