Between its designation as a state highway in 1973 and its decommissioning to the county road system in 2016, it was maintained by the Arkansas Department of Transportation (ArDOT).

ArDOT estimates the traffic level for a segment of roadway for any average day of the year in these surveys.

[7] Highway 396 ran in the Ozark Mountains, beginning at a junction with US Highway 65 (US 65) north of Burlington, an unincorporated community in northern Boone County 7 miles (11 km) south of the Missouri state line.

Highway 396 ran west from this junction 2.6 miles (4.2 km) through a rural area of undulating hills to an intersection with Flint Hill School Road, where state maintenance ended.

The roadway continued west under county maintenance as Ursey Road.