Forty people were injured in a crash between a coach and a lorry which closed a motorway early today, police said.

The London-bound carriageway of the M20 between Junction 9 at Ashford, Kent, and Junction 8, near Maidstone, was still shut at breakfast time following the collision, which happened at 1.30am. The closure was causing major problems for drivers heading towards the capital in the morning rush hour.

The accident happened when the coach, operated by a firm in Durham, and the lorry were in a collision then careered into the central reservation, causing extensive damage.

Around 40 people on the coach, which was returning from a trip on the Continent, were injured.

Four people were taken to hospital, said a Kent Police spokesman, but most of the injured suffered minor scratches.

Workmen were trying to repair the damaged safety barriers at the crash site, before the morning rush hour.

The police spokesman said: ''We are hoping to get at least one London-bound lane open soon but with the traffic building up it is going to cause severe problems.''