OKLAHOMA
CITY – Road delays due to construction mean good things for the future
of Oklahoma and are evidence that the Oklahoma Department of
Transportation has been working hard the last few months, said state
Transportation Secretary Gary Ridley on Tuesday.
“Seventy-five
percent of the stimulus funds have been committed to contract in 78
days,” said Ridley, totaling $350 million awarded for 113 separate
construction projects across the state. “That competes with anybody
across the country in how fast we were able to move.” As soon as the
federal government gave indication that transportation dollars would be
provided as part of the stimulus package to spur the national economy,
state transportation officials began the process of selecting which
projects would be funded first.
“What it would have taken us six
or seven years to do, we’ll be able to do in the next 18 months,” said
Ridley. That means the department will be doing a lot of construction
in a short time frame this summer, he said.
“We hope the public
will be understanding and somewhat patient with us,” Ridley said. “It
will be an inconvenience to their travels, but when we’re done, we’ll
have a better infrastructure and much more efficient system.”
The
federal stimulus package included $16 million to improve public
transportation in rural areas, which is being used to purchase new
buses and vans that run on alternative fuels and meet guidelines of the
Americans with Disabilities Act.
The contract for rural transit
vehicles was competitively bid through a coordinated process with the
Department of Central Services.
The stimulus program also sets aside funding for urban transit providers in Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Norman and Lawton.
The federal stimulus money is being used for its intended purpose and is having the desired effect, Ridley said.
“We
have people working today who would not have jobs if the stimulus
package hadn’t passed,” he said. The funds not only work to support
ODOT construction workers and contractors, but those who work to make
the asphalt, steel and dozens of other items needed to build and repair
roads and bridges.
The Transportation Commission approved a $1.7
billion budget Tuesday for the fiscal year that begins July 1, which
includes $600 million in federal dollars. The total budget reflects a
$5.7 million decrease in base funding from the Legislature, which is
offset by bond issues, an additional 5 percent of motor vehicle
collections and other sources.
The commission also authorized
about $41 million more in road and bridge projects funded with federal
economic stimulus money, including $35 million for projects on the
state highway system and $6 million for county road and bridge projects.
Associated Press writer Tim Talley contributed to this report.