Interstate 97
I-97 begins at US 50 and US 301 (John Hanson Highway), which run concurrently with unsigned I-595, on the edge of the community of Parole west of Annapolis. The freeways meet at a semi-directional T interchange; the ramp from I-97 to eastbound US 50 and US 301 merges with a collector-distributor road that extends east to that freeway's interchange with MD 665 (Aris T. Allen Boulevard). I-97 heads northwest as a four-lane freeway with a speed limit of . The freeway crosses over MD 450 (Defense Highway) and passes along the south and west sides of Crownsville, where it crosses several tributaries of the Bacon Ridge Branch of the South River. North of Crownsville, I-97 has a partial interchange that comprises a pair of long ramps to MD 178 (Generals Highway); the interchange allows access from southbound I-97 to MD 178 and from the state highway to the northbound Interstate. I-97 gains an extra lane in each direction from the MD 178 ramps; those extra lanes split off at the freeway's partial interchange with the eastern end of MD 32 just north of Millersville. The Interstate curves northeast and has a complementary partial interchange with the northern end of MD 3 (Robert Crain Highway). The two state highways meet each other at a six-ramp partial cloverleaf interchange immediately to the west of I-97's sweeping curve, which facilitates all movements between the three highways.
I-97 continues north as a six-lane freeway and is closely paralleled on the east by Veterans Highway on the western edge of Severna Park. The highways cross Severn Run within Severn Run Natural Environment Area before they diverge slightly at the Interstate's partial cloverleaf interchange with Benfield Boulevard; access from northbound I-97 to the crossroad is via Veterans Highway. I-97 and Veterans Highway continue to parallel each other to the latter highway's northern end at I-97's partial cloverleaf interchange with the southern end of MD 3 Business (Robert Crain Highway) and New Cut Road. The interchange includes a flyover ramp from northbound I-97 to northbound Veterans Highway just south of its intersection with MD 3 Business. The freeway continues north along the west side of Glen Burnie and meets MD 174 (Quarterfield Road) at a four-ramp partial cloverleaf interchange and MD 100 at a cloverstack interchange that has flyover exit ramps from both directions of I-97.
Interstate 96
Beyond Marne, I-96 passes the western end of M-11 and crosses into Kent County, curving around a rest area for the eastbound lanes. The freeway runs eastward through a light industrial area of the suburb of Walker as it enters the Grand Rapids metropolitan area. At the interchange with Alpine Avenue, M-37 merges onto the freeway and the two run concurrently past the studios for WZZM-TV with its iconic weatherball, a sphere above the ground that uses colored lights to display a weather forecast. Adjacent to the studios are the ramps from eastbound I-96 to southbound US 131 and from northbound US 131 to westbound I-96. These ramps mark the northern end of I-296, an unsigned auxiliary Interstate Highway designation applied to them and the US 131 freeway south to downtown Grand Rapids. I-96 turns northeasterly past a commercial area to a three-quarter cloverleaf interchange that provides all of the other connections with US 131 next to a crossing of the Grand River.
East of the river, I-96 and M-37 pass through the northern suburb of Comstock Park, intersecting Connector M-44 (CONN M-44, Plainfield Avenue) near Lamberton Lake. Past that interchange, the freeway angles southeasterly and then southward, bypassing Grand Rapids to the northeast. East of downtown, I-96/M-37 meets I-196 (Gerald R. Ford Freeway) at a partial interchange; traffic headed eastbound on I-196 must enter I-96 eastbound and only westbound I-96 traffic may enter I-196. Immediately east of the interchange is another for M-44 (East Beltline Avenue) where M-37 separates from the freeway to turn southward. Through this series of interchanges, I-96 curves to the east and then turns back southward after passing through them. There are two more interchanges for M-21 (Fulton Street) and Cascade Road before I-96 meets the eastern end of M-11 at 28th Street. The next interchange for 36th Street provides access to the Gerald R. Ford International Airport. The freeway continues to the east of the airport and then intersects the eastern end of M-6 (Paul B. Henry Freeway, South Beltline Freeway) at an interchange over the confluence of the Thornapple and Grand rivers.