Updated: Ten-year-old boy and mother critically injured in Ottawa Street North crash

A 10-year-old boy and his mother were taken to hospital in critical condition after a very serious" fail-to-remain crash Sunday afternoon.

Police say they responded to a single-motor-vehicle collision at 4 p.m. involving two pedestrians.

The collision occurred in the area of Ottawa Street North and the railroad tracks, between Beach Road and Dalhousie Avenue. A police release states, the driver lost control of the vehicle, left the roadway, mounted the curb and struck the mother and son as they were walking northbound on the sidewalk.

The driver of the vehicle, a black 2008 Chevy Equinox, ran from the scene before police arrived.

The Hamilton police collision reconstruction unit is assisting in the investigation due to the severity of injuries. Witnesses who have yet to speak with police are asked to contact 905-546-2907.

Investigators have not been able to rule out any contributing factors.

Photos from the scene show officers walking a police dog through an empty lot south of the tracks.

Ottawa Street North was closed between Beach Road and Cluny Avenue, near the Centre on Barton. Police say they expected it to remain closed into Sunday evening.

Last week, Hamilton's public works committee approved a guide to build safer streets in the city. The guide is meant to make roads safer for all users, which might mean adding bike or dedicated transit lanes or redesigning intersections to better protect vulnerable users," such as pedestrians and cyclists.

In May, city council vote to convert one-way Main Street to two-way traffic amid a spate of pedestrian deaths.

On Tuesday, a 52-year-old cyclist was killed in an early-morning collision on a Lincoln M. Alexander Parkway overpass.

Kate McCullough is an education reporter at The Spectator. kmccullough@thespec.com