Man fighting for life after horror crash on Gold Coast M1

POLICE are investigating how a man was hit and critically injured after he sprinted across multiple lanes of the M1 at Oxenford this morning.

Traffic in the northbound lanes of the M1 at Helensvale. Picture Mike Batterham

POLICE are investigating how a man was hit and critically injured after he sprinted across multiple lanes of the M1 at Oxenford this morning.

The tragic accident brought the northbound lanes of the motorway to a grinding halt for almost two hours.

Tonight forensic crash investigators were working to determine whether the man may have been trying to retrieve something that flew off the tray of his ute.

Paramedics worked on the man for about half an hour, before he was rushed to the Gold Coast University Hospital in a critical condition, with head, chest and abdominal injuries.

Witness Lauren Henderson said she saw the young man “sprint” across the road while she was travelling southbound in her car.

RELATED: MAN CRITICAL AFTER HORROR CRASH

Northbound lanes were closed for hours. Picture Mike Batterham

“He made it across a few lanes before getting hit,” she said.

“To me it looked like he was trying to beat the cars to get across to the middle barrier.
“I then just saw him in my rear vision mirror lying on the ground after getting hit.”

Ms Henderson said it appeared as though the man’s ute was parked on the side of the motorway near the speed camera.

“I thought maybe he was trying to look for something that may have fallen off his ute.”

While Kial Richards posted on social media, writing that the man “seemed to be looking for something” in the middle barrier.

Megan Jane confirmed this account, also posting “I saw him too, wearing hi-vis and looking for something in the median strip”.

A police spokeswoman said officers were currently investigating whether the man was “collecting something”.

All northbound lanes were closed between 9.30am and 11am while officers worked on the injured tradie and assessed the scene.

RACQ’s Dr Rebecca Michael said she could not comment on specific details of the tragic accident, the M1 was notorious for shutting down the city during an accident.

“When crashes occur on the M1, congestion backs up for kilometres, often grinding the nearby arterial roads to a halt,” she said.

“The Pacific Motorway from the Smith Street Motorway to the NSW border has seen more than 300 crashes in five years, putting it in the high risk AusRAP rating category for crashes per kilometre.”

Anyone with dashcam footage or information is urged to contact Policelink on 131 444.