Cyclist narrowly escapes being dragged under a truck after his bike wheels are crushed – but who is to blame?
A cyclist who narrowly escaped being dragged under a semi-trailer has left Aussies divided over who is to blame for the close call.
The 58-year-old cyclist fell on the corner of Montague Street and Lorimer Street in Melbourne during rush hour on November 26.
Shocking footage showed the cyclist giving way to the semi-trailer as the driver entered the merge lane before entering the highway.
Seconds later, the cyclist panics as his rear wheel gets stuck in the underbelly of the truck and is dragged several meters along the highway.
He loses his balance when his wheel is crushed, but manages to stagger forward and land on the sidewalk, injured but out of danger.
The cyclist was taken to hospital for treatment for minor injuries.
The driver who captured the close call is heard honking at the truck as they followed the trailer onto the highway.
The images left Australian motorists divided over who was to blame.
During the close call, the cyclist became trapped in the underbelly of the semi-trailer
“The cyclist’s fault,” someone wrote.
‘Here’s why [cyclists] they don’t belong on our roads. That’s not the trucks fault…’ wrote another.
‘The fascinating thing about trailers is that they have a long, rigid body that doesn’t bend. The interesting thing about cyclists is that there is a pedestrian path and it doesn’t appear to be a cycle path,” a third person added.
Others strongly disagreed, saying the truck driver should have waited for the cyclist to enter the intersection first.
‘The bicycle has priority, the truck [has] cut into the bike path,” someone wrote.
“The bike was in front first and the truck caught up, plus the truck is practically on the sidewalk,” another person wrote.
“Anyone who blamed the guy on the bike… he was where he was supposed to be, the truck would have seen him before he reached the corner,” a third commenter added.
A Victoria Police spokeswoman said Daily Mail Australia officers later spoke to the 75-year-old truck driver and investigations into the incident were ongoing.
The video showed the driver stopping at the zebra crossing to make way for the semi-trailer (pictured left) as the truck entered the merge lane to head towards the highway