The couple even had a public bedding ceremony (the only recorded one for a royal couple in 16th century Britain), which makes me even more curious as to why the marriage was never consummated. Was there a reaction from either royal family when they learned this news?
During Arthur’s lifetime, there was never any question that the marriage was consummated. They had the public bedding ceremony, as you said, and Catherine lived with him at Ludlow Castle in Wales until his death. Even if there was never actually any consummation, it would have been important at the time to both royal families to make sure everyone believed that they had.
It wasn’t until after Arthur’s death when it was decided Catherine should marry Henry to maintain the alliance that any questions about it were brought to light. At that point, it became beneficial to both Henry VII and Ferdinand for Catherine to still be a virgin. There’s not really any way of knowing what really happened, just what they wanted people to believe - especially since so many of the sources are biased in light of Catherine’s later relationship with Henry VIII.
It’s hard to say if a delay of consummation would be “normal”, since without it a marriage could easily be annulled. When it did happen, it’s not something that would be common knowledge. However, it wouldn’t be totally unheard of. It’s worth noting that Henry VIII’s own bastard son, Henry Fitzroy, was married to Mary Howard from 1533 until his death in 1536 and it seems it was never consummated. They were considered too young, both being 14 at the time of their marriage.