A suspended sentence handed to a trucker who caused a motorway footbridge to collapse onto traffic has been branded a "waste of breath" by the grandad he injured.

Alan Austen, 64, avoided jail yesterday after admitting causing serious injury by dangerous driving when he brought the bridge crashing down onto the Londonbound M20 during a bank holiday last August, causing £1.5m in damage.

Jim Shaw, 74, was on his motorcycle at junction four for Leybourne when he saw the 170-tonne bridge beginning to fall.

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He suffered fractured ribs after throwing himself clear of falling debris and skidding at 70mph along the carriageway.

Today, the school minibus driver is still using his motorcycle but says he will never be one hundred percent recovered.

"He (Austen) is a lucky man and he got away lightly as a suspended sentence is a waste of breath.

Video: Alan Austen speaks to reporters outside court

"It doesn't bother me that much really, it is not going to make any difference to me if he goes to prison, it is him it makes a difference to.

"He is the man that has to live with it and he is lucky no one was killed.

"At least he will be home for Christmas with his family."

"When I look at the photos I think to myself 'there's no way I could've survived that', but I did, I just can't work out how.

"It is a very strange feeling look at the photographs, it is very hard to get your head around it."

Austen, of Jedburgh Drive, Darlington, County Durham, had earlier denied the charge, as well as dangerous driving, and was due to go on on trial at Maidstone Crown Court next year.

Speaking to reporters outside, Austen said he was happy to be leaving court a free man.

He said: "I regret what happened on the day and what has happened today.

"I feel seriously sorry for him (Mr Shaw), I wish it hadn't happened but it did and I can't do anything about that."