Sources close to the project said Willmott Dixon was now favourite to sign a deal having gone up against Galliford Try, Morgan Sindall and Vinci for the project .

The £120m scheme also includes a 17-storey tower of flats and offices, which will be delivered under a separate contract, and a new cycle and pedestrian bridge to link the interchange with Stockport rail station.

Construction of the new interchange scheme is expected to start this spring, with completion estimated for 2023.

The new bus station will include a roof top park

Located alongside the A6 and Mersey Square, the interchange is being funded by Transport for Greater Manchester, Stockport Council and the Greater Manchester Combined Authority.

The transport hub will be connected to the A6 by a lift, which will also open out onto the new, two-acre public park on the roof of the interchange building, next to the residential block. Accessible directly from the A6, the park will bring much-needed green space to the town centre.

The cycle- and foot-bridge linking the development and railway station, via the park, was today confirmed as benefiting from the Mayor’s Cycling and Walking Challenge Fund – a wider £160m package that will see 42 new cycling and walking schemes delivered across Greater Manchester.

The interchange project will also see the upgrading of a nearby section of the Trans Pennine Trail alongside the River Mersey and associated secure cycle parking.