According to the Associated Press:

 

Ohio wants to spend $57 million in federal stimulus money on highway projects that won't begin for years, an unusual strategy for money that President Barack Obama said should be used to give the economy an immediate job-creating jolt.

Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland and the state's transportation officials passed over some ready-to-go construction projects and steered about 7 percent of their $774 million share for planning and preliminary studies….

While the overall approach to Obama's $787 billion stimulus package is to get money to projects that can be started right away, planning is a legitimate use of economic stimulus money, said Jill Zuckman, spokeswoman at the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Strickland said studies of long-term projects, as well as some types of preliminary work, position the state for future economic growth.

That includes a two-year study of a highway and rail project on the east side of Cincinnati and the design of a 3-mile road connecting Interstate 490 to Cleveland's art and museum district. The cost is $20 million apiece.

(Source: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hZ1vGLkcZI5s7ihQsT-HXsIf5HegD97H48R82 )