MILWAUKEE, WI Gov. Scott Walker announced that the Wisconsin Department of Transportation made payments this month to local government totaling nearly $108.2 million, in the last of this year's distributions to help them pay for general transportation aids, connecting highway projects and expressway policing.

Under the state program, WisDOT said, for calendar year 2017 local governments are sharing about $433 million from the state transportation fund to build and maintain local roads and bridges, which includes expressway policing aid to the Milwaukee County Sheriff Department for patrol of Milwaukee expressways.

Payments for cities, towns and villages are sent the first Monday in January, April, July and October, it said. Counties receive payments in three installments, with 25 percent of the annual total paid on the first Monday in January, 50 percent on the first Monday in July and the remaining 25 percent on the first Monday in October.

WisDOT said the payments to Wisconsin's 1,925 local units of government included $104.9 million in general transportation aids, $3 million to 117 that were entitled to receive connecting highway aids and $255,975 to Milwaukee County for expressway policing.

The general transportation aids help defray the costs of constructing, maintaining, and operating roads and streets under local jurisdiction. Connecting highway aids reimburse municipalities for maintenance and traffic control of certain state highways within municipalities.

In addition, WisDOT said the local communities also receive state transportation funds for public transit, elderly and disabled transportation, and airport and harbor development. And they may receive other state and federal funds for specific highway and bridge construction projects.