BEIJING, Oct 27 (Reuters) - A bus with 30 people on board plunged into a ravine in southeastern China, killing at least nine and leaving a dozen missing, the Xinhua news agency said on Saturday.

The bus was heading for Shangyu City near Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang province, on Friday when it veered off the road as the driver attempted to avoid hitting a bicycle, the report said.

China has the world's deadliest roads, due to popular disregard for traffic regulations, lax police enforcement of laws and a cavalier attitude towards safety.

An overloaded bus plunged off an overpass in the southwestern municipality of Chongqing in April, killing 26 people, one of a string of fatal bus crashes in the country in recent months.

Nearly 99,000 people were killed in 450,000 traffic accidents in China last year, state media reported.

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