Two German tourists were critically injured when a car hit them while they were crossing a road in Thailand.

Jakob Bauler, 62, and Klaus Werner, 58, were walking home from a bar in Pattaya shortly after midnight on May 6 when a sedan slammed into them in Pattaya.

Graphic footage shows how the German nationals were tossed into the air by the speeding vehicle, landing on the tarmac with shocked revellers running to their aid.

Paramedics found Jakob at the scene suffering hip pain and abrasions, while Klaus had more severe injuries. They were both rushed to a hospital for treatment.

Driver Pakasit Noodaeng, 42, parked his red Nissan Almera with its windshield and side mirror damaged and waited for law enforcement to arrive.

He said that he had been driving out of an alley at around 40 to 60 kph and claimed not to have seen the pair until he crashed into them.

He was described as 'cooperative' by rescuers and police. It is unclear if he was tested for alcohol or drugs.

Onlooker Wirat Yingyam, 45, a motorcycle taxi driver at the scene, also said the sedan was running at 40 to 60 kph before hitting both tourists.

Police Lieutenant Colonel Saijai Khamjulla of the Pattaya Police Station said officers have collected CCTV footage of the accident to use as evidence. They interviewed the driver and released him while they continue their investigation.

The policeman said: 'We must wait for the two tourists to recover so we can interview them before proceeding.'

Thailand has one of the world's worst road safety records. Ministers have set the goal of reducing fatalities from 32.7 deaths per 100,000 people to 12 per 100,000 people by the year 2027.

However, a lack of road safety education in schools, cheap loans for cars, notoriously easy driving tests, police failures to enforce road laws as well as endemic corruption and chronic under-investment in infrastructure hamper the efforts.