Peak-hour motorists crossing Melbourne’s West Gate Bridge were confronted with extraordinary scenes on Friday afternoon after a man was filmed clinging to the windscreen of a moving van on one of the city’s busiest freeways.

Dramatic footage circulating online shows the man gripping the front of the vehicle as it travelled along the M1 West Gate Freeway about 5pm.

The man appeared to be yelling at the driver while hanging onto the top of the bonnet, his legs lifted behind him in an apparent effort to avoid being dragged beneath the van as it continued down the motorway.

At one stage, he was seen ripping a windscreen wiper from the vehicle while continuing to face the driver.

Victoria Police said investigators were told the man eventually came off the van before the Burnley Tunnel in Southbank, south of Melbourne’s CBD, while the vehicle continued driving.

The man was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Police allege the incident stemmed from an earlier collision involving a van and a Nissan Navara on the nearby Bolte Bridge in South Wharf.

“It is believed both male occupants exited their vehicles and were involved in a physical altercation,” Police said in a staement to the Herald Sun.

“The driver of the Ford got back into his vehicle and while driving away, the driver of the Nissan began holding on to the van.

“Investigators were told that driver of the Nissan came off the Ford prior to the Burnley Tunnel and the Ford continued driving.”

The shocking incident caused major disruption for Friday commuters, with two lanes of the West Gate Bridge closed as emergency services responded and traffic banked up across the freeway network.

The footage has sparked widespread reaction online, with many questioning how the dangerous ordeal unfolded on one of Melbourne’s busiest roads.

Police continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident and are urging anyone who witnessed the drama or captured footage to come forward.