Driveway Paving in Arvada, CO
$4 to $8 per sq ft · 3 to 4 inch hot-mix asphalt · permit handled for you
Gravel washing out every spring, or a slab so cracked you've stopped bothering to patch it? A new asphalt driveway in Arvada runs $4 to $8 per square foot for 3 to 4 inch hot-mix asphalt on a properly graded base, and most residential jobs are drivable within 48 hours.
What Goes Into a Real Driveway Install
The part nobody sees is the part that actually determines whether your driveway lasts 10 years or 25. We excavate to sub-grade, cut in real crown and pitch so water sheds toward the street instead of pooling against your garage, and compact a CDOT-spec base course before any asphalt goes down. Then 3 to 4 inches of hot-mix asphalt, compacted in two lifts, not one thick pass that looks fine on day one and rutting under a parked car by August.
A landlord off Wadsworth called us in one August after a driveway another crew poured the year before had already started rutting where tenants parked. Turned out that crew skipped the base compaction step entirely. We tore it out and did it right, and it's held up three winters since without a single crack.
Arvada requires a flatwork-replacement permit for any work touching the public right-of-way, meaning the apron where your driveway meets the street. That permit can only be pulled by a licensed Municipal General Contractor, which is exactly the license we hold. We handle that application as part of the job so it isn't sitting on your to-do list.
Do-It-Yourself vs. Hiring a Paving Crew
Big-box driveway patch kits handle a hairline crack for a season. They cannot regrade a failed base, and they cannot compact hot-mix asphalt, which needs specialized rollers running at the right temperature window to bond properly. A DIY patch on a base that's already failing is a few hundred dollars spent delaying a job that's going to cost more once it's actually done right.
| Driveway Size | Approx. Sq Ft | Price Range |
|---|---|---|
| 12 x 30 ft, single-car | 360 | $1,600 – $2,800 |
| 12 x 40 ft, single-car extended | 480 | $2,100 – $3,700 |
| 24 x 40 ft, two-car | 960 | $4,200 to $7,400 |
| 24 x 60 ft, two-car extended | 1,440 | $9,500 – $17,500 |
What moves a job to the top of its range: tearing out an existing surface first, a sub-base that needs real regrading instead of a light scrape, and tight side-yard access that keeps our paver from working at full width.
Driveway Paving Questions
Do you need to tear out my old driveway first?
Only if the existing base has failed. We check for alligator cracking, soft spots, and drainage first. If the base underneath is still solid, an overlay is often possible and costs less than a full tear-out. If it's failed, we remove it, because paving over a bad base just moves the cracks up into the new surface within a season.
How long until I can park on a new driveway?
Plan on 48 hours minimum before regular vehicle traffic, and closer to a week before parking anything heavy, like an RV or a trailer, in one spot. Cooler shoulder-season weather slows the cure and pushes that timeline out further.
Can you match the driveway to the street where it meets the curb?
Yes, that transition is part of the flatwork-replacement permit work in the public right-of-way, and we handle the permit application as part of the job.
What's the biggest mistake homeowners make before calling a paver?
Getting three phone quotes with no site visit and picking the cheapest number, without knowing whether each quote actually included base repair, tear-out, or just a thin skim coat over the existing problem. Ask what's included in writing before you compare numbers.
Related: see our asphalt repair page if only part of your driveway needs work, or the full Arvada paving cost guide for every job type side by side.