One child and one young adult have died after a bus crashed in eastern France, local authorities confirmed.

The bus was travelling between Lyon and Bourg-en-Bresse when it crashed at around 07:00 local time on Friday in the town of Lent, approximately 34 miles (55 kilometres) from the border with Switzerland.

The town's mayor, Yves Cristin, told French media the bus "left the road and hit a tree in the ditch."

The bus was carrying 43 passengers, including 15 children, according to the Bourg-en-Bresse prosecutor's office. Three people are in a critical condition and a further 13 have sustained minor injuries.

The driver was taken to hospital with injuries and had not yet been questioned by police, the prosecutor's office added.

French Education Minister Edouard Geffray confirmed the crash involved students. He told reporters it was "always difficult when our children are victims of accidents of this nature."

Photos circulating in French media show a blue and white bus tilted in what appears to be a roadside ditch, with trees lining the road. The front of the bus appears heavily damaged.

Emergency services were deployed to the scene, and medical helicopters were used to transport victims with serious injuries to a specialised hospital.

French Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot, who was travelling to the area, said more than 100 firefighters had also been dispatched.

The local town hall was opened to provide shelter and to coordinate with emergency services, the mayor said.