“His mother or a close family relative has got a test pending and he … was open about that and that led them to make the arrangements that they have made,” he said.

He said he had been unable to see his client but had spoken to him over the phone.

No application for bail was made.

Prosecutors have requested a longer than normal time frame to hand up the brief of evidence as they gather outstanding forensic material and a pathologist’s report.

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CCTV footage and DNA will also form part of the police case, the court heard.

Mr Hyslop will return to court on September 29.

Ms Locco lost her husband, Frank, in 2017 and left behind three children one of whom is also a schoolteacher.

Ms Locco had a long and successful career. She was a mathematics teacher, acting principal at Chandler Secondary College, principal at South Oakleigh Secondary College and held senior managerial roles in the Victorian Education Department including acting regional director of the south-eastern region.

She was awarded an Australian Council for Educational Leaders fellowship last year.

The Education Department expressed the sadness they said was being felt across the Victorian education system.

“Deb was a much-loved and admired colleague … known to thousands of Victorian educators through her career,” a department spokesman said.

“She had a clear sense of purpose and deep strength of character, nowhere more evident than in the dignity and fortitude with which she faced the tragic death of her husband.”

Helen Koziaris, principal at South Oakleigh Secondary College, said the school community was grieving at the loss of “not only a professional colleague but a friend to all who shaped and drove educational change and supported staff, students and parents in their day-to-day lives”.

Beach Road has a renowned cycling trail stretching 17 kilometres of the bayside foreshore, with dedicated bike lanes.

Nine News reported that Ms Locco was wearing reflective gear, had lights on and was cycling in the bike lane.

The car involved in the collision was found later in the nearby suburb of Cheltenham and two women who say they were passengers in the car helped police with their investigation.

On Sunday, police said there had been 92 deaths on Victorian roads so far this year compared with 124 at the same time in 2019.