SPY cameras are being fitted to every Metrolink tram in a bid to stop a deadly craze.

Thrill-seekers who risk their lives by jumping onto the back of trams will be spotted by the drivers, thanks to a new "bullseye" camera. It will give the driver a full view of anyone trying to ride on the back of a tram.

And Metrolink bosses say they will take court action against anyone caught hitching a ride.

The idea has been successfully put on trial and all 32 trams will be now be fitted with the wide-angled cameras and monitors over the next month.

A number of youths have been injured in the so-called tramsurfing craze over the past two years.

At the end of July, a 17-year-old boy suffered a serious head injury when he fell from a tram after being hit by an overhanging branch. The vehicle was travelling at 50mph between Prestwich and Besses o'th' Barn when the incident happened.

Metrolink spokesman Cheryl Bevan said: "We have said all along it is very dangerous to ride on the outside of a tram. Anyone caught doing this will be prosecuted and it will become a police matter.

"The camera will give the driver full knowledge of what is happening at the back, and he will be able to stop the tram immediately."

Transport bosses have also agreed in principle to set up a Metroshuttle bus service in Manchester city centre.

The free service would be designed to fill the gaps between bus and Metrolink services, and build on the success of the former Centreline service, but serving a wider area of the city centre.