Sketch from Alabama Department o
This sketch shows the planned design for the new Interstate 459 Exit 9, just southwest of the South Shadres Crest Road overpass. The view is looking south on I-459, with traffic exiting right going toward Ross Bridge Parkway and traffic on the left heading toward Brock's Gap Parkway.
The city of Hoover has secured $16 million in new federal funding to help pay for the planned Exit 9 interchange on Interstate 459 between the John Hawkins Parkway and Morgan Road exits, city officials announced this week.
The Metropolitan Planning Organization has amended its 2024-27 Transportation Improvement Program for the Birmingham region to allow for the allocation of federal dollars for the Exit 9 project.
Projects like interstate exits typically are structured so that 80% of the funds come from federal and state money and 20% comes from local jurisdictions such as cities or counties. But to help get the project moving more quickly, the Hoover City Council in 2023 agreed to essentially split the cost.
The estimated cost for building Exit 9 and connecting roads then was put at $120 million, and Hoover agreed to pay about $61 million and cap the state’s portion at $58.95 million, or 49% of the estimated cost. Any cost overruns were to be the responsibility of the city of Hoover, per the agreement.
The Hoover City Council in March 2023 borrowed $61 million to build Exit 9, but now the estimated cost has ballooned to $130.8 million, an increase that would have raised Hoover’s total financial obligation to nearly $72 million.
This new federal funding will reduce the cost burden for Hoover residents and substantially help offset the increase in project costs. The city’s cost exposure for Exit 9 is now lowered to about $56 million, roughly $5 million below the initial $61 million Hoover committed to the project in 2023, city officials said.
Hoover Mayor Nick Derzis said in a news release that he is 100% committed to the Exit 9 project but he has been critical of the financial terms to which the previous administration and City Council agreed.
“I am pleased that through proper planning and communication with our regional partners and the MPO, we have lowered the burden on Hoover taxpayers,” Derzis said. “My administration is committed to disciplined fiscal management and to smart, planned growth,”
Hoover officials first engaged staff at the Regional Planning Commission of Greater Birmingham
in early 2026 to advance their request for federal funding for Exit 9.
“We began this effort shortly after taking office,” Mayor Nick Derzis said in a news release. “It required months of persistent engagement with our regional partners, and we are grateful for their support.”
Exit 9 was never just a Hoover project, Derzis said.
“It’s a regional one that will improve traffic flow in several portions of Jefferson and Shelby counties,” the mayor said. “I am grateful to the Regional Planning Commission staff and to every MPO committee member who saw the value in this investment.”
Exit 9 will reduce traffic congestion and improve the quality of life for people in the region, Derzis said.
“Any resident who travels Highway 150 or Interstate 459 during the afternoon commute understands why it was worth pursuing,” he said.
The interchange will be constructed on I-459 near mile marker 9, between Exit 6, the Morgan Road exit, and Exit 10 at John Hawkins Parkway, immediately south of the South Shades Crest Road overpass.
Exit 9 will feature a diverging diamond design, auxiliary lanes extending to Exit 10, bridges over I-459, and ramp bridges spanning the CSX railroad. Connector roads will tie into Ross Bridge Parkway at Alabama 150 and to Brock’s Gap Parkway at South Shades Crest Road.
Hundreds of thousands of vehicles travel this segment of I-459 each day. The interchange is designed to divert traffic, including commercial truck traffic, from Alabama 150 and relieve the heavily utilized Exit 10 interchange.
Nearly 1,000 collisions occurred in the area over a four-year span, averaging more than 230 annually, city officials said. Reducing congestion on Alabama 150 and at Exit 10 is expected to improve motorist safety, officials said.
The state currently is scheduled to begin seeking bids for the construction work late this year.
