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| Typical costs: | - All driveways start with a well-built gravel base. For homeowners on a budget, a simple gravel or stone driveway does well if it's not on a steep slope or in a low spot that floods. A stone driveway costs $1-$3 a square foot or $600-$1,800 for a 12x50-foot (600 square feet) front drive, and about $21,000-$42,000 for a two-vehicle driveway a quarter-mile long.Gravel costs 50 cents-$2 a square foot; that's $300-$1,200 for 12x50-feet or $10,000-$40,000 for the quarter-mile, two-vehicle-wide driveway.
- Macadam is crushed stone or gravel sprayed with liquid asphalt; it's also called tar and chip when used to resurface existing asphalt or concrete driveways. Macadam lasts about 6-10 years and costs $1-$3 a square foot, or $600-$1,800 for 12x50 feet and $20,000-$40,000 for a 16-foot-wide quarter-mile drive.
- Traditional dark black asphalt generally lasts 10-30 years and averages $1-$5 a square foot, or $600-$3,000 for 12x50-feet. The price per square foot drops for larger projects, so a two-vehicle quarter-mile driveway would average $21,000-$52,000.
- Asphalt can also be stamped and colored to look like bricks in a process patented by the Street Print company; the cost for a 12x50-foot front driveway is $1,800-$6,000; for the quarter-mile, two-car version it's $64,000-$100,000 or more.
- Concrete usually lasts 30-50 years and costs $3-$10 a square foot, or $1,800-$6,000 for 12x50-feet. Stamped and colored concrete is just as durable but more attractive, and costs $5-$20 a square foot, for $3,000-$12,000 for a 12x50-foot driveway or $64,000-$125,000 for a 16-foot-wide quarter-mile lane.
- Cobblestones make beautiful patterns and are extremely labor-intensive. Individual cobblestones can cost $3-$5 each, and thousands are required for an average driveway. Bricks or pavers can be used, at a cost of 50 cents-$3 each. A hand-laid drive of this type runs $10-$50 a square foot, making it $6,000-$30,000 or more for 12x50 feet.
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| What should be included: | |
| Additional costs: | - Slopes, curves, odd shapes and other complications can bump up the total cost, and smaller jobs aren't necessarily cheaper because it costs the contractor a minimum amount to haul the asphalt heater, steamroller and other equipment to the site.
- If an old driveway needs to be torn out, be clear whether that's included in the estimate.
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| Discounts: | - Join forces with nearby homeowners who need similar driveways; if you hire the same contractor for several jobs at once, it should cost less.
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| Shopping for a driveway: | |
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Article updated February 2007 |
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