Two people were seriously injured after a crash involving a school minibus.
Bedfordshire Police was called to a two-vehicle collision on the B5120 near Toddington, between Chalgrave Road and Tebworth Road, at 07:20 BST.
Central Bedfordshire Council, which owns the bus, confirmed a driver and passenger assistant were the only people on board at the time of the incident.
It added that the assistant was "extremely shaken up" and the bus driver, and the driver of another vehicle, were taken to hospital.
The two injured people were not believed to have life-threatening injuries.
Bedfordshire Police said the road was likely to remain closed "for some time".