The surface
Each surface needs a different amount of material and labour. Gravel is quick to lay and needs the least finishing work. Tarmac needs machinery but covers ground fast. Block paving takes longer because every block is laid by hand and cut at the edges. Resin bound needs a solid base underneath it as well as the resin layer, and imprinted concrete involves pouring, colouring, stamping and sealing. The pattern and the border add to the time on any paved drive.
The area and the shape
Bigger drives cost more in total but usually less for each square metre, because setting up, deliveries and machine hire are spread over more ground. Awkward shapes, curves and lots of cuts around steps, bays and manholes add time.
Digging out
On a first-time drive the lawn, topsoil and soil underneath all have to come out, and that spoil has to be taken away. On Darlington's clay we usually dig deeper than on sand and gravel to reach firm ground, and that means more spoil out and more stone in. Replacing an old drive means breaking it up and removing it first. Laying over a sound existing base avoids most of this, which is why an overlay usually costs less.
Drainage
A front drive has to drain somewhere: to a lawn or border, into a channel drain, or into a soakaway. A channel drain at the garage or front door, or a soakaway on clay, adds to the job. Choosing a permeable surface can reduce what is needed.
Edging, steps and walls
Solid edging set in concrete is essential and is part of every proper quote. Taking down part of a wall to make an opening, building pillars, adding steps or rebuilding a section of boundary all add to the price.
The dropped kerb
If you need a new or wider crossing, Darlington Borough Council either builds it or licenses your contractor to do so. Either way there are council charges as well as the cost of the work, and the council's page sets them out. Allow time too: the council says a licence can take up to ten weeks.
Comparing quotes
A low price often means a thinner base, no membrane or flimsy edging, and those are the things that make a drive sink. When you compare quotes, check that each one says:
- how deep the dig is and how thick the stone base will be;
- what edging is used and how it is fixed;
- how the drive will drain;
- whether spoil removal and the kerb are included;
- what happens to the old drive, walls or steps.
We put all of that in ours.
Questions people ask
Why don't you list prices?
Because the ground, drainage and access change the job so much that a price without a visit would be a guess.
What is the lowest-cost surface?
Usually gravel, laid in a grid with solid edging.
Is resurfacing cheaper than a new drive?
Usually, because it avoids digging out. It only works on a sound, level base.
Sources: Darlington Borough Council: vehicle accesses; GOV.UK: permeable surfacing of front gardens.