Britain will remain part of the Interrail travel scheme after the UK’s operating companies performed a U-turn just 24 hours after announcing the country’s withdrawal.

Bosses at the Rail Delivery Group (RDG), which represents the industry, said on Thursday that it would remain part of the 47-year-old scheme following the “strong reaction to news of our departure”.

RDG had said it was pulling out in order to increase sales of its own BritRail passes, which offer travel around England, Scotland and Wales for roughly the same price as current Interrail passes for 31 countries ranging from Portugal to Turkey and Norway to Italy.

Robert Nisbet, the RDG’s director of nations and regions, said on Thursday that “Britain’s train companies never wanted to leave Interrail”.

“Following the strong reaction to news of our departure, we and Eurail, the company which runs Interrail, renewed talks,” he said. “We are pleased to be able to tell passengers that we have reached agreement and will be remaining part of both the Interrail and Eurail passes.”

It comes 24 hours after Nisbet said the UK was pulling out of Interrail because its BritRail passes were “the best option” for visitors. Eurail’s managing director, Carlo Boselli, then hit back, accusing RDG of leaving in order to “secure a competitive position” for its BritRail pass. Britain keeps all the proceeds from BritRail purchases, whereas those from Interrail and Eurail are shared with other countries.

RDG’s U-turn follows the intervention of Grant Shapps, the transport secretary, who urged the UK’s train companies to “reverse their decision”. Others calling on RDG to change its position included Labour’s deputy leader Tom Watson, who said pulling out was “self-defeating and regressive”.

The Interrail scheme was launched in 1972, offering people up to the age of 21 the possibility of travelling to 21 countries for £27.50. More than 300,000 passes were sold last year, almost three times the figure for 2005. It has been a rite of passage for students and other young people seeking to explore other countries on a budget.

Pulling out of the scheme would have had little effect on UK travellers to Europe, who would still have been able to travel across EU countries. But they would have no longer been able to start their trip from their home station, and would have had to start on the Eurostar from London St Pancras.

If the UK had pulled out, European travellers would not have been able to visit the UK as part of their Interrail adventures. Instead they would have the option of buying BritRail passes offering unlimited train travel across England, Scotland and Wales, but for roughly the same price as the current Interrail passes that cover the whole continent, including the UK.