Tarmac & Asphalt in Bursledon means working with riverside properties on steep plots above the Hamble — hot-rolled asphalt compacted over a prepared sub-base into a single dense, flat surface. What that means on the ground in Bursledon is steep, sometimes stepped drives needing serious run-off control. Where it earns its keep is larger driveways that can achieve a proper fall to a drainage point; the honest caveat is that standard tarmac is impermeable, so the drainage fall has to be built in at construction. There is also the sloping Hamble riverside setting, where run-off control is a genuine build consideration to plan around.
About Tarmac & Asphalt
Tarmac and asphalt driveways are formed from hot-rolled bitumen-bound aggregate, laid in one or two courses over a compacted stone sub-base and rolled while still hot to bond into a single dense, flat surface. It is quick to lay across a large area compared with unit-by-unit systems, copes well with sustained vehicle weight, and gives a classic, understated dark finish that suits both period and modern properties without competing with the architecture. Standard tarmac is not permeable, so correct falls and edge drainage need to be built in at construction rather than added afterward, and a sound, well-compacted sub-base is what actually determines how long the surface lasts rather than the tarmac layer alone.
Best suited to: larger driveways, properties wanting a low-fuss uniform finish, and sites that can achieve proper falls to a drainage point
Less suited to: sites with no viable drainage fall or where a permeable/SuDS-compliant surface is specifically wanted
Ground & property in Bursledon
Bursledon’s riverside plots above the Hamble are genuinely sloping, and a fair number of driveways here are stepped rather than a single flat run. Falls, edge restraint and run-off control matter more on ground like this than almost anywhere else in the catchment, simply because of how steep some of these plots are.
Coastal / flood note: Hamble riverside run-off control