Engineer fights to have rail ban lifted

An engineer who says he is a renowned expert on railways has told the High Court he believes that Iarnród Éireann's new multi-million euro rail system represents "a serious hazard" to rail travellers.

Dr Michael Grimes says he is the company's "best customer" but it has banned him from travelling with it to prevent him finding out "the true facts" about the new CWR system. Iarnród Éireann says Dr Grimes poses "a grave threat" to the safety of its railway operations and his publications about it "are not merely obsessive in their content but extremely damaging", containing "scurrilous and untrue" allegations levied against management, the board of directors and Government ministers.

The decision to bar Dr Grimes from travelling on the company's trains was taken on safety grounds and Dr Grimes had no right, contractual or otherwise, to insist he be given access to the rail service, Mr William O'Connor, passenger services manager with Iarnrod Éireann, said in an affidavit.

Mr Justice Lavan yesterday directed that legal proceedings by Dr Grimes against Iarnród Éireann, in which he is challenging the company's decision to void a €2,150 ticket for unlimited rail travel for a year which was bought by Dr Grimes, should go to a full hearing.

Stating he could not grant a mandatory order on an interlocutory application, the judge refused Dr Grimes, of Grianan House, Tramore Road, Cork, an order requiring the company to honour his ticket in the interim. In his action, Dr Grimes will also seek damages for breach of contract and slander. In response to queries from the judge, Dr Grimes said he is over 65 and is entitled to free travel but does not believe in "sponging" on the State. He had bought the ticket and wanted it honoured, he said. He added he had no other means of transport.

Earlier, resisting the interlocutory application, Mr Roderick Horan, for Iarnród Éireann, said his client was entitled to bar Dr Grimes from its trains. Dr Grimes was a threat to public safety and the company had outlined a number of incidents in which he was involved.

In an affidavit, Mr O'Connor said Dr Grimes had interferred with a departing train at Ceannt Station, Cork, on November 25th, 2002. It was alleged that, after the signal was given for the train to proceed, Dr Grimes had shouted to the guard to stop the trian to let another passenger off. Then Dr Grimes demanded that other people who had arrived late and were standing outside the barrier, be allowed board the train.

The company also alleged that Dr Grimes had interfered with the station controlleron two occasions in March and October 2002.

In his affidavit, Dr Grimes said he believed Iarnród Éireann's action in barring him from travel had been precipitated by his "professional belief, as a result of intensive study, that the billion or so spent on new CWR rail may have been wasted, is a serious hazard to the travelling public and could possibly result in the closing of the railway temporarily".