Grant Frederick Coley is being named as the man who died on State Highway 2, Te Puna, after being hit by a truck yesterday morning.

Western Bay of Plenty road policing manager Senior Sergeant Ian Campion says 'Grant died when he stepped into the path of a truck about 7am”.

Members of the public rushed to the aid of Grant, but CPR attempts were unsuccessful.

Grant was a 59-year-old man from Tauranga.

'The matter has been referred to the Coroner. No further information is available at this time,” says Ian.

Talking to SunLive yesterday, Tauranga Police Sergeant Wayne Hunter says Grant was walking north on SH2, 100m south of Ainsworth Road, when he somehow stepped out in front of a school bus.

'The bus driver managed to avoid him,' says Wayne, 'but the truck, a Downer's road truck following the bus, didn't.”

The crash saw the highway closed for about one-and-a-half hours as police and other emergency services worked to clear the scene.

Police are keen to trace the driver of a vehicle that was travelling behind a bus on that stretch of road in the direction of Katikati, as they may have useful witness information.

The bus braked sharply and the vehicle following it had to go around the bus to continue its journey.

Police are asking the driver of the vehicle following the bus, and anyone else who may have information to assist the crash investigation, to contact Tauranga Police on: 07 577 4300.