+44 771 259 5731 bswdrivewaysltd@gmail.com

Tarmac Driveways in Devon, Built Properly and Guaranteed.

Quick to lay, easy on the budget, and good for decades if the base underneath is done right - which is the part most tarmac jobs skip. Covering Devon, Somerset, Dorset and Cornwall.

+

YEARS ON A PROPERLY PREPARED BASE

yr

WORKMANSHIP WARRANTY ON EVERY JOB

Free

On-site survey & written quote

mi

service radius for Devon, Somerset, Dorset, Cornwall
About our Tarmac Driveways

The most cost-effective way to surface a drive properly.

Tarmac is hard to beat on value, plain and simple. It goes down fast, needs almost nothing in the way of upkeep once it is in, and a properly laid drive will run 30 to 40 years.

It suits longer drives and shared access particularly well, where the cost per square metre starts to matter more than it does on a small single driveway. Done properly - right fall for drainage, edges that do not just fray away after a wet winter - it looks nothing like the cheap patch jobs that give tarmac a bad name.
New bitumen driveway outside a beautiful brick house in London. Plenty of space for text.

Why tarmac is still the value pick.

The price is the primary driver, but the speed of install is a close second. For large areas, tarmac remains the only surfacing option that doesn't blow a budget while still giving you a solid, durable finish that handles heavy traffic day in and day out.

Cost-Effective

The cheapest of the three surfaces we lay, keeping budgets in check.

Fast Installation

Most jobs are in and driveable within days rather than weeks.

Low Maintenance

No joints, no loose stone, nothing to weed. Just sweep and go.

Scales Well

Price per square metre stays reasonable even on long or shared drives.
The Build Process

The base and the edges are where tarmac is won or lost.

We pick tarmac suppliers based on the job and the area rather than sticking to one supplier regardless - different mixes suit different situations. Truth is, the tarmac itself is the easy part. What actually determines whether a drive lasts 5 years or 40 is the base preparation and the edge restraints.

Skip either and you get exactly what you would expect: cracking at the sides, water pooling where the fall is wrong, edges crumbling away within a couple of winters. We have seen plenty of it on other people's drives. It is avoidable, and it is why we do not rush that part.

Half a day to resurface, a few days to rebuild.

Overlaying a sound base is often done in a day. A full dig-out and rebuild is closer to 4 days. You will know which one your drive needs after the survey, not halfway through the job.

What a tarmac drive costs

Usually the most affordable of the three, which is exactly why it's the go-to for longer drives and shared access where the total area adds up fast. Resurfacing over a sound base costs noticeably less than starting from scratch. Quotes are itemised.
An image of tarmac texture
FAQ

Frequently asked questions.

30 to 40 years if it's laid properly, and that "if" is doing a lot of work. The tarmac itself isn't really the variable; the base underneath and the edge restraints are what decide whether you're looking at decades or a handful of winters before it starts breaking up at the sides. That's the bit we won't cut corners on, even though it's the bit you can't see once the job's finished.

Walk on it the next day. Give it about three days before driving on it properly, longer in cold weather since it takes longer to fully harden. Try not to do sharp turns or leave a car parked in one spot for the first few weeks, it's still settling.

Barely anything, which is half the appeal. No joints or loose stone to deal with, so it's a sweep and occasional rinse. Deal with oil spills quickly so they don't stain, and keep grass and soil from creeping over the edges — that's usually where problems start, not in the middle of the drive.

Depends what's underneath. If the base is still sound, yes — we can overlay it and you skip the cost and mess of a full dig-out. If the base has actually failed, overlaying just hides the problem for a year or two before it comes back through the new surface, so we'll tell you honestly which situation you're in after we've had a look. Not going to sell you an overlay if it's not going to hold.

Ready for a quote?

We'll break down the costs clearly so you can compare options with confidence.
Contact us

Tell us about your drive or patio.

Send us the basics and we'll come back with next steps. The more you can tell us, the faster we can give you a useful answer.

07712 595731

Mon–Fri, 8am–5pm

bswdrivewaysltd@gmail.com

We reply within as soon as possible

Looking for more options?

Want a premium finish? See Resin Bound →
Prefer a traditional look? See Block Paving →

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BSW Driveways logo – resin bound, block paving and tarmac specialists
Driveways and surfacing across Devon, Somerset, Dorset and Cornwall. Family business, run from the tools.
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