Iarnrod Éireann/Irish Rail yesterday undertook before the High Court to transport, pending the outcome of legal proceedings, an engineer who has claimed the company is seeking to permanently ban him from using its rail services.
The undertaking was given after Mr Justice Kelly indicated he would make an interim order requiring the company to carry Dr Michael Grimes on its trains until the court determined if the company was entitled to prevent him using its services.
Dr Grimes, Tramore Road, Cork, claims the company has prevented him travelling because he was intent on exposing defects in the rail system. He says he is "a fanatic on safety" in that he had been in a rail accident, "so when I see safety violations on the railway I take steps to let those responsible know - which is the last thing they want as the railway safety culture is that if you do not know, you cannot be blamed".
He says he travels frequently by train and that neither car nor bus transport is adequate to his needs.
His action raised important matters of public policy, including whether a public body which is a statutory monopoly is entitled to ban someone for life from using its services, he said.
"Just because they don't like me is a not a reason to refuse to carry me."
The company had claimed Dr Grimes posed "a grave threat" to the safety of its railway operations.
