A DRUNKEN school bus driver sliced the roof off his double decker by trying to drive under a low bridge, moments after dropping 46 pupils off.

Gurdeep Singh Sagoo, of Southall, was almost three times over the drink-drive limit when he "forgot" he was at the wheel of the tall bus and shaved off the entire roof where children had been sitting just minutes before.

The driver was facing jail on Monday after the court heard he was still intoxicated more than 15 hours after he stopped drinking. He admitted one count of dangerous driving and one count of driving while over the legal alcohol limit.

The court heard how shards of metal and glass were sent flying as he ignored warnings and careered into the bridge in Langley, Berks, on May 12 this year.

The double-decker he was driving was nearly 15ft tall, but Sagoo, who had been on an all-night bender with pals, failed to read signs that the bridge was a mere 12ft 9ins.

When arrested, he told police he had forgotten he was in a two-tier bus and thought he was driving a single decker. When breathalysed, he was found to have 97mg of alcohol on his breath - nearly three times the limit.

East Berkshire Magistrates' Court heard how Sagoo, 49, of Lady Margaret Road, had been employed by Southall-based firm Imperial Coaches,for five years.

The company was contracted by Buckinghamshire County Council to carry out a number of school runs.

The defendant was described as a "well regarded" employee and his solicitor claimed he had made "a serious error of judgement" when attempting to drive under the bridge.

He also said that he had been drinking the night before with a number of friends who were visiting from Canada, which was an error.
Committing the case for sentence at Reading Crown Court, presiding magistrate Judy Tomlin, said her powers of punishment were not great enough.

"You had been drinking, you had been driving children and at 4pm in the afternoon you had a high alcohol reading - you would have been much higher earlier on in the day."

Sagoo was handed an interim driving disqualification until he is sentenced.