A cyclist aged in his mid-twenties lay in “critical” condition on Wednesday after being hit by the driver of a sport utility vehicle (SUV) in the Brossard sector, on the South Shore of Montreal.
Posted at 11:36 a.m.
The initial facts occurred a little after 6:30 a.m., at the start of the day, not far from the intersection between rue Authier and boulevard Taschereau. This very busy axis has four lanes in each direction, while rue Authier is more residential, with one lane in both directions.
According to the first information collected by the Longueuil agglomeration police department (SPAL), the cyclist was caught while crossing the pedestrian crossing, said officer Mélanie Mercille.
The 25-year-old man, who was thrown several meters, was rushed to a nearby hospital where there are current fears for his life. The driver of the SUV did not suffer any injuries or nervous shock. His vehicle, however, suffered significant material damage.
“You could say that the impact was quite strong. On boulevard Taschereau, the speed limit is currently 70 km/h. That said, we do not yet know exactly if the driver was speeding, ”explained officer Mercille on this subject.
Several investigators, collision scene reconstructionists and forensic identification technicians were sent to the scene of the collision on Wednesday morning to determine the exact causes of it.
A security perimeter has been erected. Three of the four traffic lanes on boulevard Taschereau were temporarily closed in the morning, before being gradually opened during the day.