Ankara (AFP) - Twelve people were killed on Thursday in the Turkish capital Ankara when a bus ploughed into commuters waiting at a stop, officials said.

The driver lost control of the vehicle due to an apparent brake failure as the bus drove through the Dikimevi district of the city, Health Minister Mehmet Muezzinoglu said.

"It's a very unfortunate accident. A public bus ploughed into commuters waiting at the bus stop due to brake failure," he was quoted as telling Turkish media.

At least eight people were also hurt in the accident which took place at lunchtime, the CNN-Turk and NTV channels reported.

An AFP photographer reported chaotic scenes in the aftermath of the crash, with bodies and the debris strewn across the pavement.

Meanwhile, rescue workers tended to survivors with bodies trapped under the the bus.

The front windscreen of the bus was smashed in the impact but the vehicle was otherwise left largely intact.

Reports said that even after colliding with the bus stop, the vehicle carried on for another 80 metres (260 feet), hitting several parked cars before it finally came to a stop.

Ankara governor Mehmet Kiliclar said the driver was in good health and had not suffered a heart attack.

"The driver is on the way to the police station now. His initial testimony is that he lost control of the bus."

Deadly accidents involving public buses are a regular feature on Turkey's roads, although the scale of this incident is highly unusual.

There has also been concern about the behaviour of some bus drivers who have been filmed reading and, in one case, even dancing while driving.