A man in his 40s survived a suspected motor vehicle suicide on the R57 freeway when he knelt in front of a moving car yesterday.

According to the vehicle’s driver, the man, who was standing on the side of the road, allegedly knelt on the road as he approached.

“I was driving towards Vaalpark when I noticed the man standing on the side of the road. As I approached, he knelt in front of the vehicle, moments after I switched from the fast lane. I couldn’t stop the vehicle or swerve to the side due to other vehicles,” says the driver.

“After knocking him, I managed to stop and check on the gentlemen before getting assistance from other motorists to call medics.”

A grasscutter working on the busy road says the man was loitering for a while before the incident.

“I was surprised to see the man as we were working on the side of the road. We continued with our job and moments later, we heard a loud bang. All we saw after that was the man lying on the ground,” she says.

Police and emergency services were on the scene following the accident.

At the time of publishing, police had not responded to Sedibeng Ster’s media enquiry.