Packed bus veers into oncoming traffic and hits freight truck on an expressway in eastern Jiangsu province.

At least 36 people have been killed and dozens of others wounded in eastern China after a collision between a packed bus and a truck, officials said.

The bus veered into the opposite lane of the Changchun-Shenzhen expressway on Sunday and crashed into the freight truck, which had three passengers, according to police from the city of Yixing in Jiangsu province.

A preliminary investigation determined that the accident was caused by a flat tyre on the left front wheel of the bus, the Yixing public security bureau said.

Nine people were seriously injured, 26 were slightly hurt and one has been discharged from hospital.

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The Changchun-Shenzhen expressway reopened after eight hours of rescue work.

Deadly road accidents are common in China, where traffic regulations are often flouted or go unenforced.

According to authorities, 58,000 people have been killed in accidents across the country in 2015 alone, the last available figures.

Violations of traffic laws were blamed for nearly 90 percent of accidents that caused deaths or injuries that year, The Associated Press news agency reported.