How Much Does An Asphalt Driveway Cost?

Considering a new asphalt driveway?

The average cost of an asphalt driveway doesn’t really help does it?
What you’re really wondering is, how much would it cost to pave YOUR asphalt driveway?

Let’s see if we can try to help you answer that question!

How Asphalt Driveway Cost Is Determined

First let’s talk about how the cost of an asphalt driveway is actually determined. It’s important to understand this so that you’re prepared to answer the questions reputable asphalt contractors may have when configuring an estimate for you.

All asphalt driveways are unique. Two asphalt driveways are rarely ever the same, unless of course it’s a track home where all driveways are exactly the same. That being said, if you have a unique driveway, here are the factors that determine the cost of an asphalt driveway.

• Location relevancy to equipment storage yard and asphalt plant to factor mobilization fees.
• The amount of excavation and grading to ensure proper water drainage.
• Existing soil conditions. Will there need to be material excavated and hauled away? Will there need to be base material trucked in and installed?
• How much area is being paved? How much asphalt material is needed?
• Quantity of trucks and the amount of trucking hours needed for hauling the asphalt material.
• Installing the asphalt. How much will need to be installed by hand? How much will be installed by the paving machine?
  
  

How To Calculate The Cost Of Your Asphalt Driveway

• Mobilization
• Preparation
• Soil Export/Base Import
• Hauling/Trucking
• Asphalt Material
• Installation/Laydown
• Profit

Mobilization

Most contractors will factor in a mobilization fee which is the amount of money it costs just to get the equipment and crew to a job site. When you look at the cost a contractor incurs just getting to the job site, it can add up pretty quickly. Asphalt installation takes a much larger amount of equipment than any other driveway which includes the dump trucks, the paver, the rollers, the tractors, and of course all of the hand tools. An average paving crew can run from 5 to 10 members. So, when you factor in the cost of the hourly wage of 5 to 10 men getting the tools and equipment un-loaded, the hourly wage of the truck drivers who transport all of that equipment, and the cost of fuel to get to the job site… that can easily add up to a few or more hundred dollars and they haven’t even put a bit of asphalt down yet! Obviously, the bigger the job, the more the mobilization costs are spread out. The smaller the job, the less the mobilization cost are spread out. This is a big factor in what can make smaller jobs cost more per square foot than larger jobs.

Preparation

The next cost factored into an estimate, is the amount of preparation that’s involved. For that, each driveway is unique in it’s own way. A little driveway will take much less preparation than a big driveway, that goes without saying. But sometimes, to prepare a driveway for proper drainage, big or little, can be quite a task. The most important aspect to a good installation job is good drainage, and good drainage starts with the preparation. Obviously we don’t want water running towards our home or into our garage, so making sure that the drainage is accounted for properly is the most important aspect of installing a driveway. So, the cost of the preparation is obviously a variable in the price of paving a driveway and can only be determined by actually seeing it. This also gives the contractor the ability to see how much, if any, existing material will need to be exported.

Part of the preparation is determining how much material needs to be excavated in order to get your driveway to drain properly. Some driveways require more excavation than others. In cases where there needs to be a lot of excavation, the material that is excavated needs to be dealt with. If there is no place to leave it on your property, then it must be hauled away and disposed of, which can presents it’s own set of problems. Disposing of soil can be very difficult due to potential contamination.

Base Material

Depending on the condition of the existing soil at your home, a base material may need to be installed prior to installing the asphalt driveway. In this case, the amount of base material needed will need to calculated into the final price. Base thickness can vary around the country from 2 to 3″ all the way up to 12″. The best way to know what’s best for your driveway is to obtain at least 3 estimates from reputable contractors and compare each estimate.

Asphalt Material

Next is the asphalt material. Obviously, this part of a cost estimate is a variable depending upon the size of the project and the thickness of the asphalt. Contrary to what some people believe, there are no large volume discounts contractors receive from their suppliers. In other words, contractors don’t go to their suppliers and say, “I’m laying down 600 tons of asphalt today, how much can you drop the price?” There is no “volume pricing” in this industry. All contractors pay basically the same price for their materials which is usually agreed upon with their suppliers at the beginning of each season. So, while the cost of the asphalt material is a variable depending upon the size of the job, the price of the asphalt mix is a fixed price. It’s much more likely a contractor that’s been around for any length of time is going to get a slightly better price than other companies, but probably nothing so significant that’s going to make them the lowest bidder by any large figure.

Hauling/Trucking

When a contractor gives us an estimate to pave a driveway, they’ll need to determine the right amount of trucks needed to haul the materials. Too many trucks and they’re paying truck drivers to set around waiting for the others to unload, not enough trucks and the crew is getting paid to wait for the next load to arrive. It’s a balancing act and a mathematical calculation that’s determined by the amount of base material and asphalt material needed for the job, factored by the distance the project is away from the suppliers and the asphalt manufacturing plant. The further the project is away from the plant, the more trucks that will be needed… the closer it is to the plant, the less trucks that are needed. The thicker the sub-grade material or asphalt mat, the more asphalt mix is needed, therefore, the more trucks that are needed. It’s not always a perfect calculation and we try our best when scheduling trucks, but either way, it’s a risk that comes out of your contractors profit if it’s miscalculated and not yours.

Installation or “Laydown”

When it comes to the actual installation of the job your contractor will need to determine how much handwork is involved, determine how much time it will take to install the asphalt with the equipment, and factor in usage or replacement costs for the use of the equipment. If there are areas the heavy machinery cannot get to easily, then the installation of the asphalt must done manually in those areas, which will take additional time. When we factor in the wages and workers compensation insurance of 5 to 10 crew members as well as liability insurance and equipment that can cost a half a million dollars or more, the charges in the laydown process of the material can easily run a few hundred dollars per hour. We have to figure and calculate as best as we can to stay competitive in price. Calculate too little time and we lose money, calculate to much time and we probably don’t win the bid. Either way, it’s a risk that comes out of your contractors profit if it’s miscalculated and not yours.

Profit

The last part of the cost to pave a driveway is the profit to the contractor for the installation of the driveway. This is a number decided upon by the contractor. Now, this number is not only a calculation for profit but it is also a risk vs reward number. This is a VERY risky business. There is a considerable amount of risk asphalt contractors take when running an asphalt installation company. Contractors can lose lots of money very fast if something goes wrong. Broken down piece of equipment, traffic jams, “No Show” employees, weather… all kinds of things can cause us to lose money fast. There is also a high risk of lives working around all of this heavy equipment so insurance costs can be higher than most construction trades. Accidents have happened that have taken lives. So this number is not just about the profit in the contractors pocket. These hard working folks take on a lot of risk and work late hours many days in a row for their profit. Asphalt paving is seasonal work in some states so the profit number is also an offset for the winter months that the company is producing little or no income for themselves, their employees and their businesses while still paying bills to keep the lights on and employees paid.