The route winds north through hills and farmland to enter Searcy County, then heads east to re-enter Van Buren County.

The route does not cross any other state highways.

The route first appears on the state highway map in January 1959 as a 5-mile (8.0 km) unpaved road shooting west from Dennard.

[4] The road was later extended east through Booster and south to Highway 16 in 1967.

[5] Highway 254 was rerouted along the current alignment around 1981.