The Wyoming Transportation Commission awarded $28.6 million in highway construction contracts Thursday.

The total includes $22.2 million for the first 15 Wyoming road projects funded with federal economic stimulus money.

Stimulus spending on highway construction is expected to create about 600 jobs over the next two construction seasons, according to a press release.

The projects are:

- Seven miles of Wyoming 116 between Upton and the junction with Wyoming 450 will be widened and get a pavement overlay and some isolated reconstruction under a $7.2 million contract awarded to Border States Paving, of Fargo, N.D.

- Gillette's DRM Inc. submitted the low bid of $6.4 million for rebuilding U.S. 16 through Upton, to include widening a turn lane west of town.

- Northern Improvement Co., of Fargo, N.D., won a contract for a pavement overlay on seven miles of I-90 northeast of Sundance with a low bid of $5.9 million.

- Lovell's Mountain Construction was awarded a $3.2 million contract for a pavement overlay on nearly 10 miles of U.S. 85 south of Torrington.

- Mountain Construction also won a $1.4 million contract for a pavement overlay and chip seal on 14 miles of U.S. 30 west of Basin.

- Cheyenne's Reiman Corp. was the low bidder of $829,000 to add pedestrian railing and lighting on the I-80 viaduct in Cheyenne.

- Knife River of Cheyenne was awarded $778,000 for patching on various highway sections in Albany and Laramie counties.

- Highway Improvement Inc. of Harrisburg S.D., will receive $850,000 for crack sealing on 128 miles of highway in Big Horn, Fremont, Hot Springs, Park and Washakie counties.

- Z&Z Seal Coating of Billings, Mont., will receive $540,000 for crack sealing on 85 miles of highway in Albany, Carbon, Laramie and Sweetwater counties.

- Olson Fencing of Powell gets $437,000 for replacement of right-of-way fencing along 11 miles of U.S. 14 west of Shell and east of Cody.

- Wilson Brothers Construction of Cowley will receive $371,000 for improvements on 1.5 miles on U.S. 14-16 west of Greybull.

- Hedquist Construction of Mills was awarded a contract for $328,000 for drainage repairs on Casper Mountain Road.

- Simon Contractors of Cheyenne will receive $93,000 for a pavement overlay and new curb, gutter and sidewalks on Wyoming 151 in LaGrange.

- S&S Builders of Gillette was awarded $90,000 for sealing bridge decks in Fremont and Hot Springs counties.

- Olson Fencing of Powell was awarded $78,000 to replace right-of-way fence along 2.25 miles of Wyoming 331.