A CYCLIST was left in intensive care with serious head injuries after hitting the rear of a stationary bus in Crouch End this weekend. The crash took place on Crouch Hill as the 24-year-old cyclist travelled towards the Broadway at around 3.50pm on Saturd

A CYCLIST was left in intensive care with serious head injuries after hitting the rear of a stationary bus in Crouch End this weekend.

The crash took place on Crouch Hill as the 24-year-old cyclist travelled towards the Broadway at around 3.50pm on Saturday and hit the back of a stationary single-decker W5 bus - police say the man was not wearing a helmet at the time.

The road was cordoned off until 6.30pm that evening as emergency services rushed to the scene and the area was cleared.

It is believed the man suffered a fractured skull - he has now left intensive care and is said to be in a stable condition.

One eyewitness said: "I was just crossing the road and I think he tried to overtake the bus - it happened really quickly and he just hit the bus, the bus was stationary.

"I called an ambulance straight away and they asked me to check if he was breathing.

"It didn't look good at the beginning, it looked like a really serious head injury, but he was awake."

George Pericleous, manager of Capelli's hairdressers, added: "I was cutting someone's hair and I heard the sound of somebody crashing into something. I saw the bus and turned to see the cyclist land on the floor with the bike tangled in his legs.

"I called the ambulance straight away and ran over to the guy. He was bleeding a lot and it looked like it was coming from the side of his head.

"A few minutes later the police came and took over. They were here with an ambulance looking after the guy for a good half hour. He seemed like he was moving and talking but he was put on a stretcher into the ambulance.

"It was pretty shocking but I have seen things happen on this road before. It's quite a dangerous road. They need to do something about it because people tend to speed to try and make it to the traffic lights and it's such a narrow road."

Another man, who witnessed the aftermath of the crash, said: "All I saw was a young man on the ground bleeding quite badly from a head wound and he appeared to have a bike tyre across his shoulder."

At the time of the incident there was confusion about what had happened, with some eyewitnesses claiming the bus had hit the cyclist, but after reviewing CCTV footage, a spokesman from Transport for London confirmed: "On Saturday August 21, 2010 a route W5 single deck, operated by Metroline, was hit in the rear by a cyclist.

"The bus was stationary at the time of the incident and waiting at traffic lights on Crouch Hill.