The harsh winter weather is thought to have caused the crash which occurred at around 3pm near Njutånger in northern Sweden.

The coach had 35 passengers onboard, as it made its way from Stockholm to Umeå. The driver is reported to be the most seriously hurt, with several passengers also sustaining injuries.

“There is talk of broken limbs but no life-threatening injuries. Several people had to be cut out,” said Thomas Nygren at Sundsvall police at around 4pm.

It is a bit of a mess at the scene, he added.

“There is a complete halt to the traffic and kilometre long queues have formed from both directions.”

Widespread traffic problems affected the region of Hälsingland during the course of Saturday, although they had eased somewhat from Friday.

A further accident on the E4 earlier in the day left two people injured.

“A car drove into the rear of a truck which had ground to a halt,” Göran Lyrberg at Gävleborg police said.

Heavy snowfalls spread across the country during the night, pushing in from the south. Skåne police reported that they counted up to 15 separate traffic incidents during the night, as up to half a metre of snow in some places.

Heavier vehicles have reportedly been struggling in the winter conditions. Buses and trucks are not required to use winter tyres, something road user organisation Motormannen complained about during the week.

The group has demanded that the government extend the winter tyre requirement to buses and trucks, arguing that it would improve safety and reduce the risk of heavy vehicles stopping on slippery inclines.