The victim of a fatal road collision on Friday night was a passenger who was thrown from a crashed car into the path of another vehicle.

Police said the 40-year-old man was a rear seat passenger in a Ford Galaxy people carrier, which crashed on the M74 near Beattock around 5pm.

The car was travelling south when it struck the central rope barrier before coming to rest in the central reservation.

The man was thrown from the people carrier and was struck by a silver Mercedes which was travelling in the opposite direction.

There were four other men in the vehicle who all suffered minor injuries; a 40-year-old man who was driving the vehicle and three passengers aged 23, 34, and 63.

All have now been discharged after being taken to Wishaw General Hospital for treatment.

The 26-year-old driver of the Mercedes was not injured in the incident.

The M74 was closed for several hours after the crash and reopened at 2am on Saturday.

Several people stopped to help those who were involved in the crash.

It is understood the man who died is not from the local area and police are trying to contact his next of kin.

Officers say they wish to speak to any witnesses and have appealed for anyone with information to contact the the Roads Policing Unit at Motherwell Police Office via 101.