Vietnam express train accident kills 12

HANOI, Feb 9 (Reuters) A Vietnam north-south express train collided with a passenger bus, instantly killing 12 people on the bus and injuring scores, state media reported today.

Another 15 passengers on the bus that crashed head-on into the train yesterday night were taken to hospital for various injuries in the central province of Khanh Hoa, a traffic police officer told the Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper.

The single-track north-south line, which dates from the era of French colonial rule at the end of the 19th century, is the main rail route through Vietnam.

The government plans to build a railway at a cost of 33 billion dollar that would allow speeds of up to 350 km per hour, cutting the travel time from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City in the south to less than 10 hours from two days now.

REUTERS PDM PM1114