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“First, numerous witness interviews must take place. Obviously this will take some time,” said a police spokeswoman.

The double-decker Flixbus left the road on Wednesday morning, raced over the grass verge and overturned on its side. The police spoke of 4 deaths, 6 seriously injured and 29 people with minor injuries. The identification of the dead had not yet been completed on Wednesday.

According to the bus company, the driver of the bus complied with all driving and rest times. “There were two drivers on board, the driver on duty had been driving the bus since it left Berlin at 8am,” the statement said. According to police, he is not among the dead. Details about his health were not given.

The bus with more than 50 passengers and two drivers had an accident en route from Berlin to Zurich. He left at 8 a.m. and the accident happened around 9:45 a.m. between the Wiedemar junction and the Schkeuditzer Kreuz. Initial findings indicate that no other vehicle was likely involved. The A9, an important north-south route between Berlin and Munich, was completely closed around the accident site for twelve hours – until around 9:30 PM on Wednesday evening.

A number of serious bus accidents have occurred in recent years. Yet buses are among the relatively safe means of transport. According to accident statistics, they are relatively rarely involved in traffic accidents with physical injuries.

“However, cases where accidents occur are often dramatic, because the number of people affected can be high,” said an ADAC spokesperson. According to the information, a total of eight people died in bus accidents inside and outside the cities in 2022 – a number that is not unusual compared to the long term.

The ADAC has been referring to the obligation to wear seat belts in coaches since 1999. “It is impossible to understand whether and how individual companies check whether passengers are wearing seat belts,” the spokesperson said. Bus passengers are generally advised to fasten their seat belts. In addition, according to ADAC, coaches must be equipped with a so-called Lane Departure Warning system since 2022. It was initially unknown whether the crashed bus had one. Such a system warns the driver, but does not prevent the driver from actually leaving the road if he does not counter-steer. (sda/dpa)