Erin was brought to tears by the sickening acts of a stranger who sat with her on a tram - but it's what the other passengers did that left her truly frightened about being a young woman in Australia

A young woman broke down in tears as she recalled the disgusting moment she was harassed and spat on by a man on a tram while bystanders did nothing to help her. 

Erin Batchelor posted a TikTok about the shocking incident that occurred on a weekday afternoon in Melbourne.

Ms Batchelor revealed the man had boarded the tram before he took a seat no more than three metres away from her.

She said she was wary of him from the start, but did not want 'to judge a book by its cover'.

'I was keeping my eye on him, but you could just tell he was so high on something, he was just speaking to himself,' Ms Batchelor said.

'He pulled out a full bottle of red wine and started sipping that and then spitting it out on the floor and making all these noises.'

She said the man approached her and tried to grab her phone, which she was holding tightly.

She recalled that she looked at him but did not say anything because she was terrified. 

Ms Batchelor said the man sat in the seat in front of her and, when she attempted to move, he thrust his leg out to block her. 

She explained how she stepped over him and walked to the back of the tram with two other terrified female passengers - only for the man to follow them before accosting another woman.

'He started speaking very aggressively, and he was swearing and this is when I started shaking, and I was trying to hold it together,' Ms Batchelor said.

She said the man followed her when she got off the tram before an even more shocking incident occurred. 

'He spat on me, and I felt so disgusted,' she said.

The other woman had also got off the tram and offered her serviettes and wet wipes to clean herself.

However, she said there were plenty of other people on board who failed to offer any assistance.

'There were all these men sitting there that did nothing, which is so frustrating as well, especially seeing a young woman like me and another young woman who feels so uncomfortable,' Ms Batchelor said.

Ms Batchelor said the ordeal left her feeling 'helpless'. 

'You have no idea what this person might do, and the people around you are scared or not helping at all,' she said.

'I don't understand why people don't try and help people if they can.

'It's just so frustrating when these things happen, and especially when women don't feel safe, and it's literally on a random Wednesday at two o'clock in the afternoon, in daylight with so many people around.'

Ms Batchelor ended her video by saying the incident could have been worse. 

'I'm just sharing my frustrations and making people aware that you need to be vigilant, and just be aware of your surroundings,' she said.

Victoria Police told Daily Mail Australia the incident had not been reported.

Daily Mail Australia contacted Ms Batchelor and Yarra Trams for comment.