The Iowa Transportation Commission has approved a project that will relocate and widen U.S. 34 around the town of Fairfield, IA.

During a recent meeting, the commission gave its OK to the preparation of final plans, and set in motion the process of applying for federal funds to help construct the new four-lane section of the highway.

The bypass would run from near the town of Bernhart, where U.S. 34 intersects with Filbert Ave., to near the intersection of U.S. 34 and Osage Ave. just east of town, the commission said in its meeting minutes.

The expansion is part of a project to expand all of U.S. 34 from Des Moines to Burlington, which sits on the Mississippi River in the southeast part of the state, into a four-lane highway, The Des Moines Register reported. Current work is focused on the section between Ottumwa to Burlington; Fairfield sits about halfway between those two towns. The $56 million bypass is one of the last sections the state has to complete.

Bypasses must still be completed around the towns of Eddyville, Agency and Ottumwa, the newspaper said.