Road crews will begin work on safety improvements to Highway 525 and Highway 20 this spring, officials with the state Department of Transportation said Friday.

The state has awarded a $558,000 contract to Coral Construction Company of Wilsonville, Ore. for the roadway improvements.

Workers will replace guardrails, add rumble strips along the centerline and shoulders and remove roadside hazards such as trees from Highway 525 north of Bush Point Road to the end of the highway where it meets Highway 20.

The work will continue on Highway 20 from Coupeville to Highway 536 in Skagit County.

The project is being paid for by the 2005 Transportation Partnership Funding Package.

State officials said engineers have studied collision data and roadway conditions to determine where to spend the available funding to create the greatest benefit to drivers.

The project also includes the replacement of old metal guardrails with a steel-backed timber guardrails within the Ebey’s Landing National Historic Reserve. Officials said the new barrier will meet new safety standards and will look a lot like the new barrier in Deception Pass State Park, but without the rock bollards that hold those railings in place.