As the summer construction season winds down, the number of completed Recovery Act projects is beginning to climb.

In September, WSDOT and local governments across Washington completed an additional 30 Recovery Act highway projects, bringing the reported number of completed projects to 38.

“Drivers are now experiencing the benefits of highway projects built with stimulus money,” said Paula Hammond, Washington Transportation secretary. “People across the state are seeing these improvements in the form of smoother pavement, new guardrail and cable barrier, added rumble strips and better lighting at intersections, just to name a few.”

Transportation improvements keep transportation contractors working. Contractor payrolls continued to grow during the month of August with employees working over 250,000 hours and earning more than $9.3 million on state and local Recovery Act highway projects. It was the busiest month yet for stimulus employment as payroll increased $3.9 million (72 percent) and labor hours increased almost 108,000 (75 percent) from July. Workers earned an average salary of $37.

Washington’s ARRA program accomplished a number of milestones in September, including the start of construction of the Aberdeen Transit Station expansion and improvement project in Grays Harbor county. The project is designed to enhance safety for both riders and local traffic and to accommodate future growth of bus ridership.

Three transit agencies won $7.4 million in grant awards for new environmental projects, including bus purchases, hybrid propulsion systems, and solar panels.

WSDOT also submitted applications for three high priority projects in King County, Vancouver and Spokane to compete for the $1.5 billion available in TIGER Discretionary Recovery Act Grants.

As a whole, WSDOT and local governments have obligated $357.4 million (73 percent) of the state’s $492 million in Recovery Act funds. Washington has obligated funds to 177 (93 percent) of the current 190 projects certified by the governor. Agencies have until March 1, 2010 to obligate the rest.

Low bids on Recovery Act highway projects are helping WSDOT and local governments provide additional improvements. WSDOT has started applying federal stimulus funds to a secondary list of more than $80 million in projects identified by Gov. Chris Gregoire and the Legislature as projects that WSDOT could advance if additional stimulus funding became available.

Local agencies also selected extra projects that could be quickly advanced. WSDOT and local governments are using the additional funds to advance 17 projects that were prepared in case additional funds were made available. The list of Tier 2 projects is available online at www.wsdot.wa.gov/funding/stimulus/tier2.htm.

The Federal Highway Administration provided $492 million for state and local highway projects in Washington state, advancing projects and jobs to address high-priority highway preservation needs and fund low-cost, high-benefit transportation system improvements.

Washington state is administering the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act investments with an unprecedented level of transparency and accountability. Gov. Gregoire created a Web site, www.recovery.wa.gov/, so every Washingtonian can see where tax dollars are going and hold government accountable for the results.

On the federal level, President Obama has appointed Vice President Biden to oversee all states’ recovery efforts and to root out waste and fraud.