Ohio University students traveling to West Virginia could have a quicker trip if Ohio raises the necessary funds for a highway project supported by U.S. Rep. Charlie Wilson.

Wilson, a Democrat representing Ohio’s 6th congressional district, which includes Athens, has requested the appropriation of $5 million in federal funds to build a highway bypass avoiding state Route 7 in Proctorville.

The bypass, the second part of a three-phase, 9-mile bypass, is a $137 million building project connecting Route 7 to Interstate 64 in West Virginia, alleviating traffic and creating a more direct route to Huntington, said Robert Dalton, a member of the chamber of commerce near the bypass location who has advocated for the bypass for 30 years.

Besides a total of $7.6 million in federal funds — which includes $2.6 million already earmarked for the project — money for the bypass will have to be raised by the state government, Ohio Department of Transportation Deputy Director Scott Varner said.

“The difficulty lies in where we as a state would find the additional funding,” Varner said, adding that the project is a relatively low priority.

The bypass is listed as the second highest priority among Wilson’s funding requests because it could help industry in southern Ohio, said Wilson spokesman Jason Friedman.

Congress will decide on the $5 million appropriation in June, he said.

“His focus is really to spark economic development and help working families, and this bypass will help with both of those goals,” he said.

The $5 million appropriation would pay for the land on which the highway will be built, Dalton said.

Planning and engineering for the project will be completed by this summer, he said. There is no estimation for when construction would begin.