The A274 is a major road

Road

A road is a thoroughfare, route, or way on land between two places, which typically has been paved or otherwise improved to allow travel by some conveyance, including a horse, cart, or motor vehicle. Roads consist of one, or sometimes two, roadways each with one or more lanes and also any...

 running through mid Kent

Kent

Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...

. The northern end of the road is in Maidstone

Maidstone

Maidstone is the county town of Kent, England, south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the centre of the town linking Maidstone to Rochester and the Thames Estuary. Historically, the river was a source and route for much of the town's trade. Maidstone was the centre of the agricultural...

, at the Wheatsheaf public house where it leaves the A229. The road then follows a south easterly route to Langley

Langley, Kent

Langley is a village and civil parish in the Maidstone District of Kent, England. The parish is located on the A274 road leading south from Maidstone to Headcorn .-History:...

, where it changes to a south south easterly alignment through Sutton Valence

Sutton Valence

Sutton Valence is a village some five miles SE of Maidstone, Kent, England on the Greensand Ridge overlooking the Vale of Kent and Weald. One of the main landmarks in the village is , of which only the ruins of the 12th century keep remain, under the ownership of English Heritage, open any...

 and Headcorn

Headcorn

Headcorn is a village and civil parish in the Maidstone District of Kent, England. The parish is located on the floodplain of the River Beult south east of Maidstone....

, ending at a junction with the A262 in Biddenden

Biddenden

Biddenden is a village and civil parish in the Ashford District of Kent, England. The village lies on the Weald of Kent, some five miles north of Tenterden. It was centre for Wealden iron industry and also of clothmaking. During the reign of Edward III some Flemish clothworkers settled in the area...

.

The A274 was originally classified B2078 and was re-designated in the 1950s. The road has seen some upgrades to short sections at Park Wood (on the outskirts of Maidstone) and to the south of Sutton Valence.