This is the dramatic moment an express train smashed into a car trapped on railway tracks as its driver tried desperately to move the vehicle.

Nail-biting CCTV footage shows the stranded car with its front wheels appearing to be trapped on the level crossing in Quilmes, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina.

The female driver was seen running to a bus behind her begging the driver to reverse so she could push her white Fiat Mobi away from danger.

But as she ran back to her own car, the express train thundered through knocking the vehicle sideways.

The impact was so forceful that the car was sent flying to the other side of the road and landed on its side.

The crash closed the line for hours on June 13 as rail workers cleared the debris. The woman was shaken but unhurt and co-operated with police investigating the crash.