text: interstate 359 interstate 359 ( i - 359 ) is a part of the interstate highway system in the us state of alabama . it is a spur route that runs for 2 . 76 miles ( 4 . 44 km ) entirely within the city limits of tuscaloosa . its termini are just south of i - 20 / i - 59 interchange on the south side of town and u.s. highway 43 ( us 43 ) in downtown tuscaloosa . the entire length is concurrent with u.s. highway 11 ( us 11 ) and alabama state route 69 ( sr 69 ) , with both continuing as at grade thoroughfares north and south of the shorter interstate . route description i - 359 begins just south of the i - 20 / 59 interchange at the western terminus of skyland boulevard ( us 11 , sr 7 ) and sr 69 . from this point the route travels in a northerly direction where it meets interstate 20 / 59 at a partial cloverleaf interchange . the route reaches its first exit at 35th street in a half cloverleaf configuration , which provides access to the university of alabama . i - 359 then continues in a northerly direction paralleling greensboro avenue to its northern terminus just north of 15th street where the limited access freeway transitions into an at grade thoroughfare as it enters downtown tuscaloosa . from its crossing of the alabama great southern railroad ( ags ) through the northern terminus , the highway in its entirety is elevated along a continuous bridge span . i - 359 also features a wrong - way concurrency for its entire duration with travel from downtown tuscaloosa being signed as both i - 359 and sr 69 south and us 11 north , and with travel from the south being signed both i - 359 and sr 69 north and us 11 south . history in the early 1960s , local planners and elected officials stated the need for direct access to interstate 59 from the city of tuscaloosa . as annexation had not yet brought the city limits to the i - 59 corridor , interstate 359 was originally to be the only access provided to i - 59 directly from tuscaloosa . the route , as originally envisioned , was to have no exits for the duration of its route between its southern terminus at i - 59 and its northern terminus at 15th street in downtown tuscaloosa . actual planning for i - 359 commenced in 1961 , and by 1971 , the alabama department of transportation ( ) announced that federal funding would be sought for its construction . planning for the corridor continued throughout the 1970s , only to stall briefly due to complications with the required environmental impact assessment associated with the project . by 1976 , it was announced i - 359 would have an exit both at 35th street and 15th street to improve access to both the university of alabama and stillman college . in 1977 , publicly unveiled the final routing of the route and presented it at a series of public meetings in august 1977 . the selected route resulted in the slight relocation of 35th street , the construction of a bridge along 31st street over the freeway and the construction of a continuous viaduct along the final leg of the freeway through its 15th street junction . plans were also unveiled to add an additional travel lane in each direction along i - 20 / 59 between its junction with i - 359 and mcfarland boulevard . following the acquisition of the necessary right - of - way , phasing of the project was released in june 1979 . the first phase included the completion of the interchange at i - 20 / 59 and lane expansion ; the second phase included the segment between i - 20 / 59 and the ags railroad crossing ; and the third phase included the elevated segment through the northern terminus in downtown tuscaloosa . construction would commence in 1980 on the first phase , with the bid for the second phase setting a then - record for cost for a tuscaloosa road project at $ 11 , 884 , 450 . as construction was wrapping up on phase two , phase three of the project again set a record cost at $ 17 . 4 million in january 1982 . the phase included the completion of the viaduct section of the freeway , constructed at an average elevation of 22 feet ( 6 . 7 m ) above grade . the first segment of i - 359 opened to traffic in october 1982 between i - 20 / 59 and exit 1 . costing $ 41 million at completion , i - 359 was officially dedicated and opened for traffic on september 13 , 1983 . exit list the entire route is in tuscaloosa , tuscaloosa county .