At least 40 people have been killed and more than 60 others wounded when a train collided with a bus in a northwestern region in Egypt.

The accident happened Wednesday in the Dabaa region of Marsa Matruh town when a truck failed to stop at a level crossing and pushed waiting vehicles into the path of a speeding train.

Police say the truck pushed a bus and at least four other vehicles into the path of the passenger train, AFP reported.

Two train carriages overturned and another two rolled off the track in the incident.

Road accidents are common in Egypt where reckless driving, poor road and vehicle maintenance are blamed for the crashes.

Police estimate that about 6,000 people die every year in traffic incidents in Egypt.

HE/MMN