A cyclist is recovering in hospital under police guard after he was hit by a car on Sydney Road in Coburg.
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Police saw the cyclist on Spry Street just before 8am on Tuesday morning and tried to approach the man, who is wanted for outstanding warrants.
The man then took off on his bike and rode into traffic on Sydney Road where he was struck by a car.
Nasty scene on Sydney Road as cyclist hit by car during police pursuit.https://t.co/1byey9sTXp #Melbourne pic.twitter.com/0vmPXFoqVr— Tom McKendrick (@tommckendrick) May 16, 2016
The cyclist suffered head injuries and has been taken to Royal Melbourne Hospital under police guard.
"He had a bump to the head and knee and will be fine," a police officer at the scene said.
John McAdam from nearby shop Paint Right said he heard a "thump" and ran outside to see the man sprawled on the ground.
"There were no skids, it sounded like one car going up another car's bum," he said. "Like a nose-to-tail kind of thing."
Mr McAdam said he told a staff member to call the ambulance, who arrived within minutes. He said one of his customers was in the car behind the one who hit the man. According to him, the cyclist didn't stop and drove straight in front of oncoming traffic on Sydney Road. He may not have been wearing a helmet either, he said.
"People absolutely came from everywhere to help him," he said.
"I don't think he knew what happened, my customer gave him a pillow and a blanket and he kept saying 'what's happened?'," he said.
A VicRoads spokeswoman said Sydney Road was closed for an hour before it re-opened at 9.15am.
Sydney Rd, Coburg North - Road Reopened. #victraffic— VicRoads (@VicRoads) May 16, 2016
Crushed boxes of Krispy Kreme doughnuts were lying strewn near the scene of the crash.
Fluidrive transmissions owner Dino Spourgitis said the man who was hit was known in the area and rode around regularly on his bike. "He went into the windscreen, the fender was dented in and the glass shattered," he said.
"There was probably no time to brake at all."
The stretch of road, which has no bike lanes, had seen this kind of incident before, he said.
Just a few months ago a truck clipped a cyclist as they were both heading northbound on Sydney Road near Spry Street.
A police spokesman said the professional standards command had been notified.
Anyone who witnessed the incident is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
More to come
