The Capitol Loop, also internally numbered Connector 496, is a signed connector that provides access to various state government buildings like the Michigan State Capitol. South of this interchange, M-99 connects to the Lansing Car Assembly plant, a former facility for Oldsmobile. Continuing eastward, I-496 passes north of the assembly plant complex and south of the central business district. East of a partial interchange with Walnut Street, the freeway passes the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame, which is located on I-496's southern service drive. The south side of the freeway is adjacent to Cooley Gardens near the confluence of the Grand and Red Cedar rivers. I-496 crosses the Grand River downstream from the confluence and meets the eastern terminus of the Capitol Loop. This interchange with Cedar and Larch streets is also a connection to Business Loop I-96 (BL I-96) and Pennsylvania Avenue. Joseph Street ends after the connection to Pennsylvania Avenue. The main freeway crosses a rail line owned by CSX Transportation. I-496 runs parallel to the north side of the rail line while Malcolm X Street follows to the south as far as the Clemens Avenue overpass. The freeway then crosses into East Lansing near the Red Cedar Natural Area. After crossing the city line, I-496 turns southward and merges with US 127. The two highways run concurrently, and they cross a line of the Canadian National Railway. The freeway runs along the western edge of the campus of Michigan State University. South of campus, I-496/US 127 crosses back into Lansing and has an interchange with Jolly Road before entering Delhi Township. About two-thirds of a mile (1.1 km) south of Jolly Road, I-496 meets I-96 and terminates; US 127 continues southward as a freeway toward Jackson. Like other state highways in Michigan, I-496 is maintained by the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT). In 2011, the department's traffic surveys showed that on average, 61,082 vehicles used the freeway between BL I-96 and the Trowbridge Road interchange south of US 127, the highest traffic count along I-496. West of Creyts Road, 17,600 vehicles did so each day, which was the lowest count along the trunkline. As an Interstate Highway, all of I-496 is listed on the National Highway System, a network of roads deemed important to the country's economy, defense, and mobility. An east–west freeway was originally planned as an Interstate Highway allowing traffic to access downtown Lansing in the 1955 "General Location of National System of Interstate Highways" ("Yellow Book"), an early proposal for what would become the Interstate Highway System.