About 10.40am on Sunday, August 12, Manning Great Lakes highway patrol detected a white Kia travelling on the Pacific Highway while not staying in the correct lanes.

The vehicle was stopped near the Old Bar exit.

The driver, a 40-year-old Port Macquarie man, underwent a roadside breath test and returned a positive reading. 

He was arrested and taken to Taree Police Station where a subsequent breath analysis returned an alleged reading of 0.220.

He was charged with high-range drink driving and his licence was suspended and confiscated.

About 3.15pm, police allege the same vehicle involved in the previous incident drove towards them.

Once the vehicle stopped, the driver left the vehicle and began walking towards officers.

He returned a positive roadside test and was arrested.

The man was transported to Taree Police Station where he returned an alleged reading of 0.151.

The same 40-year-old Port Macquarie man was charged with high-range drink driving and driving a vehicle with a suspended licence.

His car keys were then confiscated.

The man was granted conditional bail to appear at Taree Local Court on Tuesday, August 28 on both drink driving offences and driving a vehicle with a suspended licence.

NSW Police traffic and highway patrol command Assistant Commissioner Michael Corboy said drink driving impairs a person’s ability to control a vehicle.

“Drink drivers put themselves, their passengers and other road users at risk.

“Last financial year, police charged 18,056 people with drink driving, an increase of 789 on the year previous.

"We know that drink driving is a factor in about one in every seven crashes in NSW where someone loses their life.

“Of the drink drivers/riders who were killed in the five-year period from 2013 to 2017 (provisional), 93 per cent were men and 66 per cent were under the age of 40.

"With 218 lives lost on our roads so far this year, road users need to take great responsibility for their actions, and help us drive down the road toll." Assistant Commissioner Corboy said.