Islamabad/UNI: At least 18 people were killed and several were injured when a passenger coach collided with a trailer in Pakistan's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, police said.

The accident took place late on Thursday night near Kohat Tunnel on Indus Highway in the Kohat district, when a passenger coach collided with a trailer coming from the opposite direction, according to the police.

Rescue teams had to cut the ill-fated passenger coach to recover the bodies and the injured trapped inside the vehicle, said the police, adding that the accident happened due to the over-speeding of the trailer.

The passenger coach was traveling from the northwest Lakki Marwat district to Peshawar, the provincial capital.

Following the accident, rescue teams and police reached the scene and shifted the injured people to a nearby hospital.

Road accidents are quite frequent in Pakistan, mainly due to poor roads, badly maintained vehicles and unprofessional driving.