A woman who witnessed a police chase across Auckland that passed close to several schools says it's incredibly lucky no children were hurt.
Police shot at a car at a busy intersection in Manurewa yesterday after monitoring its movement for over an hour across the city.
The driver was apprehended at the intersection of Roscommon and Weymouth Roads about 4.30pm yesterday.
The incident began with reports a man had shot a gun on the North Shore just after 3pm.
Police said a man fled the scene, speeding across the city before arriving in South Auckland.
Tracey Cooper was driving home from work when she saw a speeding red Holden coming directly towards her on the wrong side of Roscommon Road.
She had time to pull over as the car passed, followed by police cars "flying" at about 90km/h in a 50km/h zone.
"Because it was quite far away I had a lot of time to get myself out of the way. But I was thinking, had I even been two minutes later, I would have been pulling out of Sharland Ave right into the path of that car," she said.
"I probably would have been collected... because that car wasn't stopping."
Ms Cooper said the cars were speeding through a busy residential area, so it could have resulted in a tragedy.
"There are two schools, and there were still kids playing out on the road. If someone [would have] stepped out in front of them at the pedestrian crossing, they really had nowhere to go.
"It was lucky that it wasn't earlier because there would've been heaps of kids out there... It's a bit scary to think about actually."
Video of the incident shows the red Holden driving the wrong way down a road, skidding and completely turning around, followed closely behind by multiple police cars.
Officers get out of their cars and shots are fired at the car as it drives off in the direction it came.
Colwyn Quedley has lived on the road where the incident started - Potter Ave - for 38 years.
He said the street in Northcote had always been good, until recently.
He blames property development for an upheaval of what was a quiet area, which now attracts people who drive quickly and loudly down the street.
"With guns it's a different situation I think," Mr Quedley said.
"It makes you feel really quite uncomfortable. You never know when anyone might turn up and blow your head off."
Mr Quedley said he has never felt as uncomfortable on his street than in the last two years.
He said a chicane had been removed from the road and people now drove dangerously down it.
"A lot of the vehicles, whichever way they're travelling down Potter Avenue, they're on the wrong side of the road. I can see a serious accident happening at some stage.
"You get a lot of vehicles that drive through at night with screaming exhausts and they're really motoring, so you're waiting for the bang.
"It just feels so different. It doesn't feel like Potter Avenue when we moved in 1981."
The alleged offender was bitten by a police dog as he was apprehended.
He was taken to Middlemore Hospital under police guard.
Police said he would be charged with a number of driving and firearm-related charges, and the Independent Police Conduct Authority had been notified.
