According to the report Maryland allocated 91 percent of its stimulus funds, or $400 million, to improving existing roads -- one of the highest percentages in the country. It spent only 4 percent of its flexible funds on transit but still ranked 16th among the states, said report author Roger Millar of Smart Growth America.

The report did not take into account the dedicated highway and transit money provided to the states under the stimulus  bill because the states had less discretion in how they spent that money.

Smart Growth America generally favors concentrating spending on transit, pedestrian and bicycle projects, as well as system preservation of existing road infrastructure, to contain sprawl and promote a cleaner environment.

Its report contends that such "smart  growth" projects also have greater economic benefits than building or widening roads. It said transit projects generate 31 percent more jobs per dollar spent than road construction, while preservation projects yield 16 percent more jobs.

Transit and road repair projects tends to be more labor-intensive, while road construction projects tend to be weighted more heavily toward materials such as steel and asphalt.

The report also contends that spending on existing infrastructure has a greater payoff because it holds off the need for expensive reconstruction and helps keep existing communities from falling into disrepair.

Dru Schmidt-Perkins, executive director of 1,000 Friends of Maryland, said the group is pleased with Maryland's ranking  She said that with further stimulus spending unlikely, it  is especially important that the state maintain its priorities with what are likely to be scarce state and federal funds.

Schmidt-Perkins said that for many years, projects were chosen for political reasons or because they had been on a  local government's list for a long time.

"We can't afford that anymore," she said.