OLYMPIA — Sen. Val Stevens of Arlington wants construction to begin on the long-sought U.S. 2 bypass in Monroe the moment money to pay for the project is secured.

To that end, the Republican lawmaker drafted legislation for the 2008 session aimed at getting the engineering and design work done while the search for funding proceeds.

“This means (the Department of Transportation) would go forward with the project,” Stevens said Monday.

Stevens filed Senate Bill 6188 on Dec. 7. It will be formally introduced when the Legislature convenes Jan. 14. But like all legislation, it is not guaranteed a hearing.

“We’re not asking for anything that doesn’t provide safety. We’re not asking for anything unusual,” she said.

Fred Walser, chairman of the U.S. 2 Safety Coalition, said while he had not read the proposed bill, he agrees with the goal of getting the project ready even before dollars are in hand.

“I would support that 100 percent,” said Walser, a likely Democratic challenger to Stevens in 2008.

The state has talked about a bypass around Monroe for more than 40 years, Walser said. He said he has a 1967 Thomas Guide map book on which a proposed bypass is shown.

The state is spending money to install rumble strips on U.S. 2 where, in the past eight years, 46 people have died from injuries related to crashes and accidents between Snohomish and Stevens Pass.

In October, Gov. Chris Gregoire designated U.S. 2 as a safety corridor, which could make it easier to net federal dollars for improvements.

“We have the governor’s attention. I have the answer,” Stevens said.

Her bill does not specifically mention the Monroe bypass. Instead, it creates a new designation of “emergency project” that is defined so narrowly it applies only to the bypass.

Under her proposal, an “emergency project” is on a highway of statewide significance and on a route declared a safety corridor by the governor and was both proposed and initially studied at least 40 years ago.

Stevens said this legislation will advance the project.

“I just don’t believe that putting rumble strips down on either side of the road or in the middle of the road and putting more state patrol on the road will solve the problem,” Stevens said.

Reporter Jerry Cornfield: 360-352-8623 or jcornfield@heraldnet.com.