Plans to shut ticket offices at station - including Norwich - have been cancelled.

Train company representative Rail Delivery Group (RDG) announced plans to close almost every railways station ticket office across England in July.

But now transport secretary Mark Harper has revealed the government has asked train operators to withdraw their proposals.

This is in response to watchdogs Transport Focus and London TravelWatch announcing they opposed every single planned closure due to issues such as the impact on accessibility.

Greater Anglia confirmed in July that Norwich's ticket office was set to become a Customer Information Centre.

A company spokesman said this would have seen "minor alterations" made to opening hours in Norwich, but that the centre would have "[offered] a full range of products and provide help with more complex transactions".

There would have been no change to the hours that staff are available, with an employee presence throughout the day.

However, the company declined to comment on whether the shake-up would have resulted in any job cuts.

The proposals came as passenger numbers nationwide stand at their lowest since 2002 and revenue lies 30pc below pre-Covid levels.

Speaking on the U-turn, Mr Harper said: “The consultation on ticket offices has now ended, with the Government making clear to the rail industry throughout the process that any resulting proposals must meet a high threshold of serving passengers.

“We have engaged with accessibility groups throughout this process and listened carefully to passengers as well as my colleagues in Parliament.

“The proposals that have resulted from this process do not meet the high thresholds set by ministers, and so the Government has asked train operators to withdraw their proposals.”