Man killed in hit-and-run on highway outside Herzliya

25-year-old driver was checking his car’s engine on the side of the Ayalon highway when he was struck by a passing vehicle

A 25-year-old motorist was killed in central Israel on Friday after being hit by a passing car on the side of the Ayalon Highway.

According to reports, the man got out of his car just after the Kfar Shmaryahu exit near Herzliya to check a problem with his engine, when he was struck by another vehicle.

Reports said the driver fled the scene and that police have opened an investigation into the fatal incident.

Magen David Adom paramedics said the man was declared dead at the scene.

According to a Knesset-commissioned report that was published earlier this year, 94 people have been killed on the sides of roads between 2013-2018. The number includes pedestrians and motorists who were fixing their cars on the side of the road.

The report said the number of fatal accidents along the sides of roads could be reduced if highway shoulders were widened, and more rest stops were built to help combat driver fatigue.