Hoover:
New Route to Galleria Will Open in November
Holiday shoppers traveling to Hoover next month will have a new route to take them to the Riverchase Galleria and Patton Creek shopping center.
Hoover Mayor Gary Ivey announced on Oct. 15 that a new route to Interstate 459 should be open by Nov. 22, the Friday before the annual Black Friday shopping day.
Chapel Lane, just west of the Galleria and north of Interstate 459, is being extended over Patton Creek and under the interstate to connect with Galleria Boulevard on the south side of Interstate 459.
The 3/4-mile road extension will include a 1,200-foot bridge and is expected to give Hoover residents north of the interstate and west of U.S. 31 a key route to the shopping centers.
The road extension project, estimated to cost $5.7 million, has been in the works for about 10 years, city officials said.
The project is a joint endeavor between Hoover, Jefferson County and the Alabama Department of Transportation.
Ivey said the road extension will ease traffic congestion in Hoover, especially during the busy holiday season.
Crews have already put down the final asphalt coat on the road extension, and the mayor said a new gutter system has been ordered to keep water from draining off the interstate onto the new Chapel Lane.
The Chapel Lane extension is the second of three phases of the Interstate 459 flyover project.
The first phase was the flyover which carries southbound interstate traffic to the west side of the Galleria and connects with Alabama 150.
The third phase of the project is still being planned but would allow traffic to go across Alabama 150 and connect with Old Montgomery Highway near the Cahaba River.
