'Majority were always opposed to bus hub plan'

Three-quarters of those who took part in a consultation over the doomed creation of a transport hub in Norfolk did not support the proposal, a Freedom of Information (FoI) request has revealed.

The plan for the Sheringham Travel Hub included the demolition of a 1950s bus shelter. This led to protests, which ultimately scuppered the whole scheme.

Steff Aquarone, Liberal Democrat MP for North Norfolk, said it was a "complete disgrace" that the council "ignored" residents' concerns.

But Graham Plant, Norfolk County Council's cabinet member for highways, infrastructure and transport, said the suggestion that residents were ignored was "not correct".

The council said the existing bus shelter on Station Approach was unsafe and did not meet "modern accessibility standards". It would therefore not survive the revamp.

The authority held a three-week public consultation last May as well as two open meetings, which generated 547 responses.

Of those responses, according to the FoI request shared with Aquarone and seen by the BBC, more than 400 did not support the proposal.

Aquarone said: "I have written to Norfolk County Council to urge them to meet with local partners at the earliest opportunity in the spirit of the collaboration that ministers, residents and local representatives are calling for.

"The funding is available, the need is clear, and the expectation from government is to get on with the job properly and with the input of the community."

The response to the FoI request revealed that only 20% of respondents supported the proposal.

After nine days of protests which saw residents camped out at the shelter, Sheringham Town Council withdrew its support from the demolition proposal at an emergency meeting.

On a visit to Norfolk, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer weighed in and said he was "not surprised" local people had strong views on the issue.

When the overall hub scheme was scrapped, Norfolk County Council said it was "disappointed" not to be completing it.

Plant said only 23% of those who responded to the consultation were bus users and that it prompted "clear changes" including more green space and a design which reflected the "historic setting".

He added: "A consultation is not a referendum on whether the scheme should go ahead but an opportunity for residents to shape the final design.

"We were clear from the start that retaining the existing shelter was not possible due to the safety concerns... the shelter therefore needed to be removed, in order to deliver improvements that are compliant with national guidelines, which is why the scheme can no longer take place."

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