NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Highway construction projects will be in full swing this summer in Tennessee. The Tennessee Department of Transportation awarded a record number of contracts last month, many of which were funded with federal stimulus tax dollars.

There will be a new bridge on Robertson Road over Interstate 40 that will cost $32 million, and it's one of 193 projects being paid for with stimulus money.

Eubank Asphalt Paving and Sealing in Charlotte, Tenn., is one of the many highway companies that will have plenty of work in Tennessee this summer. Eubank added 10 employees for these summer stimulus projects.

A month ago, Michael Eubank said his company had zero work, but it won about half a dozen TDOT stimulus contracts last month.

TDOT's chief engineer, Paul Degges, doesn't expect massive traffic jams this summer because the work is spread over the whole state.

Degges said the projects are creating about 24,000 jobs across the state.

Projects in and around Nashville include:

White Bridge Road/Robertson Road I-40 bridge in Nashville

Highway 171 from Division Street to Lebanon Road in Mount Juliet (State Route 24)

Shelbyville bypass from U.S. 231 to U.S. 41A (State Route 16)

Paving of State Route 109 from the Gallatin bypass to Hollis Chapel Road

TDOT normally spends $600 million to $800 million on highway projects in a year. This year, it is adding an extra $500 million to that figure in projects.

The money spent should have a ripple effect through the community. Bridge-building companies for example buy concrete and steel, which will help other areas of the economy.

And how will the public know if their federal dollars are being spent wisely?

Every month, contractors like Eubank will prepare reports for the federal government that show exactly how many people they've hired and what projects they worked on.

Eubank said many of the 10 workers he has hired recently for the stimulus projects have been laid off from other jobs. Now, they are earning a wage with overtime.

The owner of Lojac, one of the biggest highway contractors, said they laid off 200 employees in December but have now called them all back to work.

TDOT said the majority of the new contracts do not award incentive payments for work finished early, but they do get charged if they are late completing the job.

TDOT Stimulus-Funded Road Projects Where Contracts Were Awarded In June (pdf)