MONROE, Wash -- While the state announced Tuesday that 3,100 construction jobs were lost in May, federal stimulus dollars are now flowing in hoping to stem the tide.

Crews broke ground Tuesday on a more than $2 million project that's the first of its kind for Snohomish County. Construction will begin in early July and last through the fall.

It's all about the stimulus money, and it's Snohomish County's first highway project funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The project will add new asphalt, rumble strips and striping along Highway 2 between Monroe and Sultan. And while it'll make for a safer drive, it'll also help people pay their bills.

"The paving project means a job," said Danielle Branes, a truck driver for the contractor that will repave the five-mile stretch of road.

"I'm able to get a paycheck and I'm able to spend that locally at the grocery store," she continued. "And the grocery store pays their employees. And their employees go and shop at another store."

It's good for the economy, but it also means some badly needed safety improvement to an especially dangerous highway known for fatal car crashes.

"It's going to create a safer environment," said Trooper Keith Leary with the Washington State Patrol. "The roadway has pot holes that have been filled -- it's a rougher portion of road, rutting in spots."

It's a classic win-win, and this is just the beginning: federal stimulus money is paying for 181 projects across the state.

Another one of those projects is scheduled to begin next month, when crews pour 10 miles of concrete median barrier along northbound Interstate 5 near Marysville.

Highway officials hope it will do a better job than cable barrier at the location in stopping crossover accidents.

The project includes $2.5 million in federal stimulus money to pay for traffic cameras, overhead message signs and traffic detectors to help improve safety.

The project is a result of a 2007 study that found a higher-than-average number of crossover collisions on I-5 near Marysville.