TOKYO (AFP) - A man was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after intentionally steering his car onto a pavement and hitting 12 pedestrians in the Japanese city of Nagoya, police said on Sunday.

The incident occurred mid-afternoon close to the city's central station and the driver was caught on the spot, a provincial police spokesman told AFP by telephone.

He did not give any other details including the driver's identity.

Media reports said 12 pedestrians were injured, one of them seriously.

"I tried to kill people with the car," the man told investigators, according to the Jiji Press news agency.