Private Roadways and Driveways


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  We did a job for a wonderful customer last year. Their private drive leading up to their driveway was so impassable they could no longer receive any mail or garbage service. It was no fault of their own, or the neighbors. What we found was that the original development of the roadway was a disaster from the beginning. 


 

 Building a roadway and/or driveway is much like building a house. It is only as good as the foundation it stands on. Many factors such as sloping, drainage, and water diversion tactics have to be put into practice from the beginning, or your house and driveway will not last.

 There are other design issues that must be considered from the beginning if you want your driveway to stand the test of time. Material, compaction, soil stability, drainage, outfalls, easements, utilities, etc.. to name a few.

 We've seen many results of improperly installed roadways and driveways. The damage we've encountered has ranged from mud holes and potholes to complete impassable washout, as seen in the photo. By the way, every driveway in this photo had a stopped up and covered up culvert due to sandy silt piling up in them over time.
                                                          
                                                                      
                                       
                                                                          

Although we repaired the washout so our wonderful customers could get to their home and receive mail and garbage service again, the entire roadway needed a complete overhaul. Culverts needed digging out and replacing, proper sloping needed to be graded, a road base with good compaction needed to be installed, and drainage outfalls needed to be put in place. In order to do that, neighbors would have had to pitch in and agree to pay tens of thousands to repair something that wasn't built with a proper foundation from the beginning. Clarity of easement boundaries would have had to have been established through a survey as well. 

Sometimes, though, even if you build a roadway and/or driveway as strong as I65, it has to be properly maintained. It may be built to stand the test of time, but maintenance is still necessary. If not properly maintained, the slightest crack can turn into a pothole, the pothole into a washout, and the washout will ultimately lead to the need for very expensive repair.


                                                       

 Pate LLC Site Services has over 30 years of foundation experience. Although we have extensive experience and specialize in other types of foundations, (you'll hear about those in upcoming articles) our knowledge of private roadways and driveways and what it takes to make them stand up to the monsoons we often have in the south is rock solid!


                                            

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us! 

Click on the link below to our website and either fill out the form and we'll contact you, or see the "Contact Us" site menu and give us a call or text 

God bless you!


              

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