Police had to endure a torrent of abuse when they were forced to close a road in Hotwells during a busy rush hour after a serious road crash.

One witness said she was disgusted at the attitude of motorists to the police officers and ambulance crews who closed Merchant's Road and a stretch of the A4 Hotwell Road after the crash involving a motorcyclist and a car at about 5.15pm on Friday.

It was first thought that the motorcyclist, believed to be in his 30s, was left fighting for his life after the crash.

But it was later discovered that his injuries were not so serious.

One witness, commenting on the Post's ThisisBristol website, said: "I was stuck in the traffic and it was clear to see it was serious by the amount of emergency vehicles at the scene.

"However, what made me sick was the abuse the police on traffic point duty were getting from those whose journey was delayed while this guy was fighting for his life."

Another motorist said she was "ashamed" that people could treat the emergency services so badly.

She said: "I witnessed some of the abuse as well and was ashamed that people were treating coppers like this when it was obvious it was bad. Yes the accident made me very late to get home and I missed bathing my baby boy and putting him to bed, but I was just grateful to not be involved in the accident."

The rider is understood to have ended up underneath a car after the collision.

The motorist was not injured.

Police closed Merchant's Road and a stretch of the A4 Hotwell Road from the crash scene towards its junction with St George's Road, Jacob's Wells Road and Anchor Road for more than three hours following the collision.

The motorcyclist was anaesthetised at the scene by the Great Western Air Ambulance team and was taken to Frenchay Hospital by road.

The accident caused long delays for commuters heading to Avonmouth and Long Ashton.

Wayne Baker, an Avon and Somerset police spokesman, said officers were simply "doing their jobs".

He said: "We initially thought the motorcyclist's injuries were life-threatening, but it turned out that they were not.

"We were asked by the doctor to close the road and in a situation like that, it could effectively become a crime scene, so we had to close the road and put a cordon up around the area.

"It was unfortunate that it happened at peak time when people were travelling home."

He added: "We tried to get the message to people through the media that the road was closed and to avoid the area.

"It's just one of those unfortunate circumstances – we had a job to do, and it had to be carried out in a way to enable us to investigate a potential crime scene."