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.