A CYCLIST has been rushed to hospital after falling to the ground and narrowly missing being hit by a van.

The man in his forties was cycling along the A4 Bath Road when he lost balance after a pedestrian suddenly stepped from a bus stop into the road.

Hitting his head on the kerb as he fell the man's bike was then struck by a van.

Neither the cyclist or the pedestrian were hit by the passing vehicle in the collision close to the junction with Southcote Lane.

A spokesman for Thames Valley Police said: "We were called today at 7.19am to reports of a collision near the Southcote pub.

"It appears a pedestrian may have looked to step out and a cyclist has fallen off his bike and hit his head.

"A van then collided with his bike but did not hit him."

The road was temporarily blocked up with traffic while emergency services worked but was cleared by 8pm.

A spokesman for South Central Ambulance Service said: "We sent one ambulance and took an adult male patient to the Royal Berkshire Hospital."

The extent of the cyclist's injuries were not known.