RALEIGH, N.C. - The state Department of Transportation has laid off 88 temporary workers and likely will remove hundreds more from the payroll by the end of the year due to sagging road-building revenues, an agency spokesman said Friday.

The layoffs in field offices statewide began in late October and included 33 departures Friday in a DOT division office that covers eight south-central counties, DOT spokesman Ernie Seneca said.

It’s unclear if all of DOT’s 930 temporary employees will need to be laid off in the coming weeks, but Seneca said hundreds probably will be let go.

“Laying off people is a very difficult decision and one that doesn’t come easily,” Seneca said.

Temporary workers work on snow removal, mow grass and perform surveying and clerical tasks, to name a few. Seneca said their pay ranges from $11 to $20 per hour.

The layoffs are among the latest cutbacks performed by the Department of Transportation because DOT-dedicated revenues are 9 percent below budget projections since the fiscal year began July 1.

The drop-off is caused by fewer automobile sales and reduced demand for gasoline. The motor fuels tax and highway use tax on automobile purchases are among the primary sources for two dedicated road-building funds.

Through October, the state had collected $902 million in revenues but had budgeted $987 million, according to DOT documents presented to legislators. Federal highway revenues also have been held back, Gov. Mike Easley said in a prepared statement.

“The money for road work by these temporary employees is just not here,” Easley said, adding that the cuts are more proof that North Carolina and other states need an economic stimulus package from Washington that would include transportation projects.

State DOT “has more than $5 billion worth of projects ready to go today, throughout the state, if the money was available from a federal stimulus program,” he said.

DOT also announced Friday that bids for 20 projects have been delayed for the past several weeks. Projects for November and December have been pushed back to Jan. 20. They include construction of the Fayetteville Outer Loop and New Bern bypass, valued at $310 million, Seneca said.

A hiring freeze remains in effect while travel, training and equipment purchases have been suspended or limited. Remaining field employees will focus on critical maintenance needs and safety repairs, according to Seneca.

The Department of Transportation has 14,000 employees and runs on a $3.9 billion budget of state and federal funds.

The rest of state government is already facing a $320 million shortfall, but that is projected to grow by the end of the fiscal year next June to anywhere from $800 million to $1.6 billion. Easley’s office is holding back as much as 5 percent from state agencies in a plan to locate $1.2 billion to fill any budget holes.

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