{{Short description|Highway in Tennessee}} {{distinguish|U.S. Route 74}} {{Use American English|date=May 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}} {{Infobox road |state=TN |type=Dual |route=74 | map={{maplink-road|from=Tennessee State Route 74.map}} |map_custom=yes |map_notes=SR 74 mainline in red |length_mi=17.4 |length_ref=<ref name=gm>{{Google maps|url=https://www.google.com/maps/dir/35.1978599,-84.8496363/34.9885386,-84.7758768/@35.1788946,-84.9862218,45636m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m9!4m8!1m5!3m4!1m2!1d-84.868051!2d35.139823!3s0x885e2b6560d41cbb:0x98e2bf3cd084497!1m0!3e0?hl=en|title=Overview Map of State Route 74 |access-date= November 1, 2017}}</ref> |established=October 1, 1923<ref name=1925report>{{cite book |type = Report |author1 = Highway Planning Survey Division |year = 1925 |title = Biennial Report of the Commissioner of the Department of Highways and Public Works State of Tennessee for the Years 1923 and 1924 |url = https://www.tn.gov/content/dam/tn/tdot/documents/100years/Biennial_Report%2c_Department_of_Highways_1923%2c_1924.pdf |location = Nashville |publisher = Tennessee Department of Highways and Public Works |access-date = May 19, 2023 |pages = 39–44 |oclc = }}</ref> |direction_a=South |terminus_a={{jct|state=GA|GA|225}} at the [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]] state line near [[Tennga, Georgia|Tennga, GA]] |junction={{plainlist|1= *{{jct|state=TN|US-Byp|64|US|74|name2=[[APD-40]]}} in [[Cleveland, Tennessee|Cleveland]] *{{jct|state=TN|TN|60}} in Cleveland *{{jct|state=TN|US|11|US|64|Sec|312}} in Cleveland}} |direction_b=North |terminus_b={{jct|state=TN|US|11}} in Cleveland |counties=[[Polk County, Tennessee|Polk]], [[Bradley County, Tennessee|Bradley]] |previous_type=US |previous_route=74 |next_type=I |next_route=75 }}
'''State Route 74''' ('''SR 74''') is a north–south state highway located primarily in [[Bradley County, Tennessee]]. It runs from the [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]] state line to downtown [[Cleveland, Tennessee|Cleveland]]. The route serves as a major shortcut, along with [[Tennessee State Route 60|SR 60]], for Cleveland citizens to commute to [[Atlanta, Georgia]].
The section of SR 74 from its southern terminus to [[U.S. Route 64 in Tennessee|US 64]] in Cleveland is a signed secondary highway, with the rest of the route to its northern terminus an unsigned primary highway.
==Route description==
SR 74 begins at the Tennessee–Georgia state line and runs along the [[Bradley County, Tennessee|Bradley]]–[[Polk County, Tennessee|Polk]] county line as Spring Place Road, continuing into [[Murray County, Georgia|Murray County]] as [[Georgia State Route 225]]. The route takes its name from [[Spring Place, Georgia|Spring Place]], an unincorporated community in Murray County on GA 225. The route immediately crosses the Conasauga River Basin and the [[Conasauga River]], then veers to the northeast approximately {{convert|1/2|mi|m|spell=in}} later, completely into Bradley County. The route travels for approximately {{convert|8|mi|km|spell=in}}, passing through primarily farmland and woodland, crossing several ridges and valleys. The route then comes to an intersection with [[Tennessee State Route 313|SR 313]], which continues southeast to [[Oldfort, Tennessee|Oldfort]], and enters the community of [[Wildwood Lake, Tennessee|Wildwood Lake]]. The route continues for another {{convert|2.75|mi|km}} and comes to an interchange with [[APD-40]] (US-64 Bypass/[[U.S. Route 74 in Tennessee|US 74]]/SR 311), and enters the city limits of [[Cleveland, Tennessee|Cleveland]]. The route continues for approximately {{convert|1|mi|km|spell=in}} through [[East Cleveland, Tennessee|East Cleveland]], and comes to an intersection with [[Tennessee State Route 60|SR 60]] (Dalton Pike), and the route turns right, continuing north as Wildwood Avenue. Approximately {{convert|1.25|mi|km}} later the route comes to an intersection with [[U.S. Route 64 in Tennessee|US 64]]. Most maps show the route as ending here, but the [[Tennessee Department of Transportation]] (TDOT) lists the route as [[Concurrency (road)|continuing along concurrently]] with [[U.S. Route 11 in Tennessee|US 11]] (Ocoee Street) through downtown Cleveland up to its split with the [[U.S. Route 11 Bypass (Cleveland, Tennessee)|US 11 Bypass]] (Keith Street) in northern Cleveland.<ref name=gm/><ref name=TDOT>{{cite map |author = Tennessee Department of Transportation |author-link = Tennessee Department of Transportation |year = 2015 |title = Official Transportation Map |url = http://www.tn.gov/assets/entities/tdot/attachments/2015-16_Official_SMap_(Back_Side)110915.pdf |edition = 2016–16 |location = Nashville |publisher = Tennessee Department of Transportation |access-date = November 1, 2017 |url-status = dead |archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20160725163610/http://www.tn.gov/assets/entities/tdot/attachments/2015-16_Official_SMap_(Back_Side)110915.pdf |archivedate = July 25, 2016 }}{{full citation needed|date=November 2017}}<!--what's the scale? which inset or map section(s) are being referenced?--></ref>
==History== The current SR 74 is the third state route in Tennessee to bear this designation. The first designation was one of the original 78 state highways established on October 1, 1923, and ran between [[Tennessee State Route 24|SR 24]] in [[Algood, Tennessee|Algood]] southeast to [[Tennessee State Route 1|SR 1]] in [[Cookeville, Tennessee|Cookeville]].<ref name=1925report/> Around 1925 or 1926, it was extended southeast to [[Crossville, Tennessee|Crossville]]. In 1927 or 1928, this SR 74 was renumbered as part of [[Tennessee State Route 42|SR 42]]. The second iteration of SR 74 was established in 1927 or 1928 between [[Tennessee State Route 39|SR 39]] (now [[U.S. Route 411#Tennessee|US 411]]/[[Tennessee State Route 33|SR 33]]) in [[Ocoee, Tennessee|Ocoee]] to the [[North Carolina]] line east of [[Ducktown, Tennessee|Ducktown]]. In 1933, [[U.S. Route 64 in Tennessee|US 64]] was added to this routing, and the following year, the SR 74 designation was extended west along this route to Cleveland, and slightly rerouted. This route was further slightly rerouted in 1938, and renumbered [[Tennessee State Route 40|SR 40]] in 1941. The present-day SR 74 was established around 1949 or 1950, between the Georgia state line and US 64 in Cleveland. On July 1, 1983, as part of the [[1983 Tennessee state highway renumbering|highway renumbering and state takeover]] that year, SR 74 was extended along US 11 from downtown Cleveland to the intersection with the US 11 Bypass, replacing [[Tennessee State Route 2|SR 2]]; SR 2 was rerouted onto the bypass, replacing SR 2 Bypass.
Between early 2012 and late 2013, TDOT rebuilt the bridges over the Conasauga River and Basin, closing the route for several miles.<ref>{{cite news |last=Higgins |first=Randall |date=February 2, 2012 |title=Cleveland: Spring Place Road closing for new bridges |url=http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/news/story/2012/feb/02/cleveland-spring-place-road-closing-new-bridges/69741/ |work=[[Chattanooga Times Free Press]] |access-date=November 1, 2017 }}</ref>
==Major intersections==
{{jcttop|length_ref=}} {{TNint |county=Polk |county2=Bradley |location=none |mile=0.0 |road={{jct|state=GA|SR|225|dir1=south|city1=Chatsworth}} |notes=[[Georgia (U.S. State)|Georgia]] state line; southern terminus; SR 74 begins as a signed secondary highway }} {{TNint |county=Bradley |cspan=7 |location=Wildwood Lake |mile= |road={{jct|state=TN|Sec|313|dir1=east|name1=Ladd Springs Road|city1=Old Fort}} |notes=Western terminus of SR 313 }} {{TNint |location=East Cleveland |mile= |road={{jct|state=TN|US-Byp|64|US|74|name2=[[APD-40]]/[[Tennessee State Route 311|SR 311]]}} |notes=Interchange; beltway around the eastern side of Cleveland }} {{TNint |location=Cleveland |lspan=5 |mile= |type=concur |road={{jct|state=TN|TN|60|dir1=south|name1=Dalton Pike|location1=[[Dalton, Georgia|Dalton, GA]]}} |notes=Southern end of SR 60 concurrency }} {{TNint |mile= |type=concur |road={{jct|state=TN|US|64|TN|60|dir1=east|dir2=north|name2=Inman Street/[[Tennessee State Route 40|SR 40]] east|city1=Ocoee|to3=to|US-Byp|64|US|74}} |notes=Southern end of US 64/SR 40 concurrency; northern end of SR 60 concurrency; SR 74 becomes an unsigned primary highway }} {{TNint |mile= |type=concur |road={{jct|state=TN|US|11|US|64|dir1=south|dir2=west|name2=S Broad Street/S Ocoee Street/[[Tennessee State Route 40|SR 40]] west|Sec|312|dir3=west|name3=Inman Street|city1=Ooltewah|city2=Birchwood}} |notes=US 11 south/US 64 west follow one-way pair; southern end of US 11 concurrency; northern end of US 64/SR 40 concurrency; eastern terminus of SR 312; US 11/SR 74 follow Broad Street/Ocoee Street one-way pair north }} {{TNint |mile= |road={{jct|state=TN|TN|60|name1=25th Street/[[APD-40]]|to2=to|I|75}} |notes=Northern terminus of APD-40 }} {{TNint |mile=17.4 |type=concur |road={{jct|state=TN|US-Byp|11|US|11|dir1=south|dir2=north|name2=Keith Street/[[Tennessee State Route 2|SR 2]]|city1=Ooltewah|city2=Charleston|city3=Calhoun|dab1=Cleveland}} |notes=Partial interchange; northern terminus of US 11 Bypass and SR 74; SR 74 ends as an unsigned primary highway }} {{jctbtm|keys=concur}}
==See also== * {{Portal-inline|U.S. Roads}}
==References== {{Attached KML|display=inline,title}} {{Reflist}}
[[Category:State highways in Tennessee|074]] [[Category:Transportation in Bradley County, Tennessee]] [[Category:Transportation in Polk County, Tennessee]]