A car travelling eastwards appeared to cross over into the westbound lane and collide with an oncoming vehicle, resulting in another three cars becoming involved.

Firefighters assisted paramedics and police in removing occupants from the damaged cars.

Two lone male drivers were taken by ambulance to Ninewells Hospital, one with a neck injury and the other complaining of back pain.

Emergency services had difficulty negotiating the busy morning rush en route to the scene. Police closed off a section of the road to allow personnel to operate.

Traffic travelling into the city clogged Arbroath Road and surrounding feeder routes as they were diverted away from the scene.

Chief Inspector Sandy Bowman, in charge of road policing, said, “An eastbound car crossed over into the west bound lane, which resulted in the other four vehicles becoming involved.”

Traffic was held up for almost three hours after the crash.

The knock-on effect at such a busy time exacerbated the situation.