Record spending on highways in Wyoming this year will put a dent in a work backlog that has been years in the making, but it won't erase it.

Del McOmie, chief engineer for the Wyoming Department of Transportation, said WYDOT so far has $452.1 million worth of work out to contract during the fiscal year, including contract administration. If design costs and off-system enhancements like bike paths are added, the total is about $509 million. Both are record amounts.

Federal stimulus money has been a boon, McOmie said. WYDOT is on track to spend $156.7 million for highway projects.

"That's giving us 60 more projects this year than we would have had in the past," McOmie said.

McOmie said of the projects let thus far under the economic stimulus program, bids have been $21.6 million lower than engineers estimated, which he attributed to a combination of lower or moderated materials costs and competition among contractors.

Despite the increased spending, McOmie said billions of dollars would be required for the state to fully catch up on the backlog. For years, he said, highway spending stayed relatively flat, while construction costs ballooned.

"We experienced well over a 250 percent inflation rate in the last 10 years, and so we just didn't have as many projects going out the door with the static funding we'd received," he said.

Interstate 80 across southern Wyoming presents a major challenge. Over the next 30 years, WYDOT expects traffic to more than double from a current average of 13,000 vehicles per day.

Large trucks, which now make up more than half the traffic, are expected to increase at a faster rate than passenger vehicles.

"Meanwhile, estimates show WYDOT will need $6.4 billion, after adjusting for inflation, during that time frame to simply maintain I-80 in its present condition," the WYDOT Web site states.

One idea being considered is to turn Interstate 80 into a toll road.

McOmie said handling the federal stimulus money has gone smoothly, thanks to close cooperation between WYDOT and the Federal Highway Administration.

Fifty percent of the stimulus money had to be obligated by June 30. "We're well over 90 percent," McOmie said, which is the best performance in the nation.

Business Editor Tom Mast can be reached at tom.mast@trib.com, or call 307-266-0574. Or check out his "Two Bits Worth" blog at tribtown.trib.com/TomMast/blog.