Bourke Street Mall possible upgrades with tram-controlled bollards after Mitsubishi speeds through

Retractable bollards could be installed across the tram lines at Melbourne’s Bourke Street Mall after a runaway Mitsubishi led a police chase through the popular shopping strip.

Victoria Police and Melbourne City Council will review the possible security upgrades following the incident on Thursday.  

Officers had tried to pull over the green Mitsubishi Lancer on nearby Swanston Street, but the car sped away before turning down Bourke Street. 

A male passenger got out of the car and ran away as police drew their firearms in a bid to stop the driver. 

But he did a U-turn back along Bourke Street and escaped. 

The street is partially protected by steel bollards and planters, which were installed following the 2017 Bourke Street car rampage that killed six people and injured 27 others.

However, bollards have not been installed across the tram lines at both ends of the mall so trams can still move easily along the street, the Herald Sun reported.

Officers tried to pull over the green Mitsubishi Lancer on nearby Swanston Street, but the car sped away before turning down Bourke Street (pictured)

Officers tried to pull over the green Mitsubishi Lancer on nearby Swanston Street, but the car sped away before turning down Bourke Street (pictured)

The street is partially protected by steel bollards and planters, which were installed following the 2017 Bourke Street car rampage that killed six people and injured 27 others

The street is partially protected by steel bollards and planters, which were installed following the 2017 Bourke Street car rampage that killed six people and injured 27 others

The upcoming review into Bourke Street security will consider whether it will be necessary to install tram-controlled retractable bollards

The upcoming review into Bourke Street security will consider whether it will be necessary to install tram-controlled retractable bollards

The upcoming review into the Bourke Street security will consider whether it will be necessary to install tram-controlled retractable bollards.

That would effectively stop any car from driving down the mall in future. 

RMIT urban planning expert Michael Buxton argued the bollards should have been installed following the 2017 car rampage.

‘They should be put in, it’s an easily available technology and it would solve the problem,’ he said.

Monash University Accident Research Centre senior research fellow Dr David Logan said all options should be considered.

‘You could (have bollards everywhere) but the place starts looking like a war zone, these things sort of take away that nice, open feel that I think we probably value in the city,’ he said.

Lord Mayor Sally Capp said the review would also look into the existing security measures.

‘We want to balance having a welcoming and open city that operates well together with safety – of course, safety is a priority.’ 

The green Mitsubishi Lancer did a U-turn back along Bourke Street before turning a corner and evading police

The green Mitsubishi Lancer did a U-turn back along Bourke Street before turning a corner and evading police

Police are seen on Bourke Street Mall on Thursday afternoon a car was seen tearing down the busy shopping mall

Police are seen on Bourke Street Mall on Thursday afternoon a car was seen tearing down the busy shopping mall

How the Bourke Street Mall police chase unfolded

Police carry out a licence plate check on a green Mitsubishi Lancer in Swanston Street at 4.55pm on Thursday.

The green Lancer leads police down Bourke Street Mall as officers fear a ‘hostile vehicle attack’.

Bollards along the walkway and a tram block the Mitsubishi from escaping. Police pull a gun on the driver.

A passenger flees and the runaway car does a U-turn.

Police determine the driver is not trying to harm pedestrians, but is attempting to ‘evade police’.

Car drives back up Bourke Street Mall before turning left and losing police at Lonsdale Street.

Police locate the car locked in an underground carpark on Ashworth Street, Albert Park, at 6.40pm.

Driver and passenger remain on the run. 

Ms Capp said the existing steel bollards and planters proved to be effective protection.

‘The bollards worked really well and provided those safety zones for pedestrians, and really limited the travelling of the vehicle and the damage that the vehicle could do,’ she said. 

Following the police chase on Thursday, officers found the green Mitsubishi Lancer on Ashworth Street in Albert Park with the number plates removed.

There were no reports of injuries from the incident, and police believe the driver was trying to escape arrest and did not intend to hurt people along Bourke Street Mall.

He was last seen in the St Kilda area, and police are urging anyone who has seen the car to call triple zero. 

A map detailing the police pursuit that unfolded in Melbourne on Thursday before the Mitsubishi got away

A map detailing the police pursuit that unfolded in Melbourne on Thursday before the Mitsubishi got away

The incident was reminiscent of the devastating Bourke Street rampage of 2017, when James Gargasoulas (pictured) ran down and killed six people in Melbourne's CBD - including a baby boy and a young girl

The incident was reminiscent of the devastating Bourke Street rampage of 2017, when James Gargasoulas (pictured) ran down and killed six people in Melbourne’s CBD – including a baby boy and a young girl

Gargasoulas injured dozens of bystanders, knocking them to the ground and into walls while driving in a drug-induced psychosis

Gargasoulas injured dozens of bystanders, knocking them to the ground and into walls while driving in a drug-induced psychosis

‘The vehicle was followed by the Victoria Police Air Wing and last sighted in the St Kilda area,’ a Victoria Police spokesman said. 

‘Investigations into the incident remain ongoing and the vehicle remains outstanding.’  

Witnesses say pedestrians were forced to dive out of the path of the car as it came ‘tearing down’ the street.  

A musician who was performing nearby claimed he watched as a man clambered out of the car after it collided with a bollard. 

‘I saw screeching tyres and then slam… it was nuts.’ 

Another witness said ‘folks were running in every direction, into the shops,’ as the car sped through the streets.

Gargasoulas used a stolen car to mow down pedestrians on the busy Bourke Street mall in Melbourne 's CBD on January 20, 2017, claiming the life of six people (pictured)

 Gargasoulas used a stolen car to mow down pedestrians on the busy Bourke Street mall in Melbourne ‘s CBD on January 20, 2017, claiming the life of six people (pictured)

He said the officers were ‘stymied’ in trying to effectively stop the car in its tracks by a tram which cut them off, appearing to ‘miss the sound of the sirens’. 

Shane Lowe, who saw the incident as it unfolded, told The Herald Sun the driver appeared alone and the front section of the car appeared damaged.

‘He was really flooring it, everyone was running up against the walls and into shops,’ Mr Lowe said. 

The incident was reminiscent of the devastating Bourke Street rampage of 2017, when James Gargasoulas ran down and killed six people in the busy CBD – including a baby boy and a young girl. 

Gargasoulas injured dozens of others, knocking them to the ground and into walls while driving in a drug-induced psychosis.  

He was sentenced to life in jail at Victoria’s Supreme Court on February 22, 2019 with a non-parole period 46 years making him eligible for parole in 2063. 

Gargasoulas used a stolen car to mow down pedestrians on the busy Bourke Street mall in Melbourne 's CBD on January 20, 2017, claiming the life of six people (pictured) 

Gargasoulas used a stolen car to mow down pedestrians on the busy Bourke Street mall in Melbourne ‘s CBD on January 20, 2017, claiming the life of six people (pictured) 

The non-parole period of 46 years is understood to be the longest handed down in Australia. 

In 2018, Somali-born terrorist Mohamed Khalif stabbed three people, killing one, during a rampage down the same famous street. 

He was shot dead by police after his Holden Rodeo loaded with gas cylinders hit a pedestrian as it mounted the kerb and exploded near Swanston Street. 

ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack. 

Anyone with information about the incident is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.