A passenger died and 16 others were injured when a minibus taxi veered out of control on the N1 just past the Golden Highway bridge in Soweto, Netcare 911 said on Friday.

"A red minibus taxi lost control and collided with a large highway sign on Thursday around 8pm.

"It then rolled over the on-ramp and rested next to the storm water drain near the embankment," said spokesperson Nick Dollman.

Dollman said paramedics and fire-fighters attended to 17 injured passengers on the scene.

"One died at the scene and 16 other patients were taken to the Chris Hani-Baragwanath, Helen Joseph and Milpark hospitals." Four of the victims were critically injured and the others sustained moderate to serious injuries.

Traffic was affected for about three hours due to the closure if the Golden Highway onramp and the left lane of the N1, said Dollman.