SPRINGFIELD – Illinois could have $275 million more for road and bridge projects this year if lawmakers approve a Department of Transportation funding plan, according to a summary obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press.

Transportation officials identified $400 million, mostly in extra federal and freed-up state money, to pump into the transit improvement program during the next five years. One lawmaker said the agency is pushing for immediate legislative approval so work can begin once the weather warms up.

The DOT would push $275 million of the infusion into this construction season. That would represent a 15 percent increase over the $1.76 billion the agency previously announced it would spend in the budget year that ends June 30, but still less than a year earlier.