A DRUNK driver smashed into the back of a stationary vintage motorcycle at a red light at Bennetts Green, crushing the bike and sending the rider flying five metres through the air and over the top of another car.
Adam Harvey, 43, of Belmont North, had drank four beers at the Gateshead Tavern on the afternoon of November 29, 2022 before he took off and was spotted driving "dangerously", overtaking and undertaking at speed as he approached heavy traffic on the Pacific Highway.
And perched on a Triumph Bonneville motorcycle was a man and his female passenger, who had stopped at a red light in the far right hand lane heading south.
Harvey was travelling at speed in the left lane before merging across and colliding with the motorcycle, pushing it into a Toyota Corolla stopped in front and crushing the motorcycle between the two vehicles.
The impact launched the male rider about five metres through the air and he landed on the back windscreen of a Toyota Aurion, which had stopped in front of the Corolla.
The back windscreen smashed and the rider fell onto the roadway suffering spinal fractures.
The female passenger was also thrown from the bike and landed on the road where witnesses found her face down and unresponsive. She had suffered a fractured pelvis and leg and required surgery to insert screws into her ankle.
The motorcycle was completely destroyed, according to court documents.
Harvey immediately admitted to causing the crash, telling witnesses and police who arrived on scene that he was at fault.
"The guy in the grey car said it was his fault, that he changed lanes and didn't see the motorcyclist and hit the motorcyclists," a witness told police.
Harvey was breath tested and returned a positive result, telling police his last drink was about 20 minutes before the crash.
He later recorded a blood alcohol reading of 0.120 - in the mid-range of drink driving and more than double the legal limit.
On Wednesday, Harvey appeared in Newcastle Local Court where he pleaded guilty to two counts of dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm - driver under the influence.
He will next appear in Newcastle District Court next month to get a sentence date.
