[4] Its primary purpose is to provide access between the General Motors (GM) automotive assembly plant and Interstate 65, as well as residential and commercial areas within Spring Hill.

[4][8] SR 396 officially begins in the center of a three-level combination interchange with U.S. Route 31 (US 31) southwest of the business district of Spring Hill and west of the GM plant.

Beyond this interchange, the roadway continues to the north for 1.3 mi (2.1 km) as an unnumbered surface street that retains the Saturn Parkway name, and provides the primary means of access to the GM plant.

The highway then shifts east, where the speed limit increases from 55 to 70 miles per hour (89 to 113 km/h), and has a diamond interchange with Kedron Road directly south of the Spring Hill Battlefield.

[16] TDOT considered using SR 396 for a section of Interstate 840, an outer southern bypass around Nashville, but planners ultimately chose a route approximately 6 miles (9.7 km) to the north.

[17] Since the route's completion and the opening of the GM plant, Spring Hill has grown to contain more than 50,000 residents and continues to rapidly expand, necessitating improvements to the Saturn Parkway and other roads in the area.