Neither the tone of the article nor the people quoted seem to have any doubt here, that the driver couldn't reasonably have been expected to see what was in the road in front of him.
Police re-creations showed the bike was “virtually indistinguishable” in the dark, with the rear red light on Hall’s bicycle difficult to see.
When he refocused on the road, he saw something briefly but had no time to avoid what he believed was an animal.
No charges have been laid.
Australian law protected him only as far as compelling him to wear a hat. The rest is his fault.