Muar district police chief ACP Raiz Mukhliz Azman Aziz said the 12 were travelling in a tour van which was involved in the accident with an express bus ferrying 28 passengers, and two sports utility vehicles (SUV) - Madza CX-30 and Honda HR-V at 5.15 pm.
All the 28 bus passengers escaped unhurt but the bus driver and a passenger in the Madza car sustained minor injuries.
"Initial investigations showed that the bus travelling from Melaka to Johor Bahru on the left lane is believed to have hit the tour van in front of it, before the van rammed into the back of the Mazda.
"The Mazda then hit the Honda in front,” he said in a statement today.
Raiz Mukhliz said all the injured were taken to the Sultanah Fatimah Specialist Hospital in Muar.
The case is being investigated under Section 43 (1) of the Road Transport Act 1987. -Bernama