It is designated as a core route of the National Highway System, forming a portion of an interprovincial corridor.

Highway 9 leaves the concurrence at this point and runs east/west for the balance of route to the Saskatchewan border, providing connections to Hanna and Oyen as well as numerous smaller communities, and generally running parallel to Highway 12 to the north.

[2][4] Over the past few years, the province of Alberta has executed a number of upgrades to the highway, widening shoulders and realigning the road (most recently just west of Drumheller, although the new alignment now bypasses the Horseshoe Canyon landmark as a result).

[5] The northern segment used to extend from Langdon to the north bank of the Bow River, indicating that a bridge might be constructed to connect the two sections.

The bridge was not constructed and the 9.7 km (6.0 mi) section was transferred to Rocky View County in the 2000s.