I AM a Bury businessman who had call to go to Manchester for the Property Investor Show at the GMEX last Saturday.

I was leaving Bury early on Saturday morning and while not a regular Metrolink, user I thought I would give it a go on this occasion. It would save on driving, finding and paying for parking once in Manchester. What a mistake.

I sat towards the front of the tram which was fairly quiet until a group of late teens/early twenty year old males got on at the back and discussed quite loudly using the foulest of language the events of the previous night, etc, along the whole journey. They were oblivious to their fellow travellers, who I imagine might have become accustomed to this. Unfortunately, they and I had no option but to hear it all.

There's more. Leaving the GMEX at the end of the day I waited patiently along with many others for the return tram. Some were hazarding a guess that perhaps there had been an accident or breakdown, but no one knew for sure and there was no information from Metrolink via the PA system at Market Street.

After about 30 mins I rang Metrolink and rang and rang and rang.

Eventually I got through, was told there had been a power failure and that the tram would be with us in eight minutes. At the same time as the call, there was an address via the PA system.

A further 28 minutes later a tram turned up and, needless to say it was crammed. Fortunately I got a seat at the front.

There was a young couple standing in the aisle at my shoulder, who, oblivious to everyone, not in hushed tones, and with no sense of decency, discussed the experiences of getting "stoned" on "weed" and the paranoid effects it had on them. The young girl (aged about 17/18) then told of her experiences of working in Ibiza and shared not only with him, but the rest of the front tram, her sexual experiences.

They eventually got off, exposing a couple sitting down with a four or five-year-old sat between them. The man proceeded to roll a reefer, clearly spreading out the tobacco and cannabis without apparently any sense of doing anything wrong.

Fortunately, I have an option not to use the Metrolink, but many others do not and they have my sympathy.

I certainly would not use or recommend the tram ever again.

I'll stick with the car and control who and what invades my space.

REAFFIRMED, COMMITTED, CAR DRIVER FROM BURY