A crash at a Christchurch intersection has left one dead and at least one other injured.

A man who stole a van from a work site, leaving skid marks behind, made it fewer than 500 metres before he crashed and died.

The van hit a ute at the intersection of Innes Rd and Cranford St, in Christchurch. The impact caused the van to roll. The 30-year-old van driver, who was the sole occupant, died at the scene.

The only person in the ute was shaken, but uninjured, police said.

GEORGE HEARD/STUFF The crash happened at the intersection of Cranford St and Innes Rd in Christchurch on Tuesday.

The van belonged to aluminium joinery company ​Nulook Solutions. Managing director Aaron Fitzgerald said two crews were working at an Innes Rd home about 1pm Tuesday, when they heard one of the contractor's vans being stolen from a grass verge in front of the home.

"They heard the van do a skid on the lawn as it took off, next minute it's in an accident.

"It's a real tragedy. I'm not sure what was behind it, with the person who has stolen the van and lost their [life]. It is a tragedy, but we are obviously very happy none of our employees were involved in the accident," Fitzgerald said.

GEORGE HEARD/STUFF The intersection is expected to be closed for some time.

Canterbury metro commander Superintendent Lane Todd said police were still working out what caused the crash.

It was "too early to speculate" on the circumstances around it.

The van was headed northeast when it crashed with the ute. It was yet to be determined what way the ute was travelling, Todd said.

ALDEN WILLIAMS/STUFF Skid marks on Innes Rd, possibly caused by an alleged van thief who crashed and died fewer than 500 metres down the road.

A man who lived about a block from the crash scene said he heard a "helluva thump".

The intersection was problematic, especially for those trying to turn right from Innes Rd onto Cranford St as only a couple of vehicles could get through before the lights changed, he said.

Kidd's Cakes and Bakery manager Chad Meehan said "nobody even saw it happen, nobody heard it happen".

"The first we knew about it a nurse came in and said she'd stopped by to see what she could do.

"It's very, very difficult to see what would have happened, because the position of the vehicles – they're in such [angles] you can't even imagine how they've hit."

It appeared the vehicles collided with great impact, which surprised him given it was a suburban intersection, he said.

The intersection closed for several hours after the crash.