By Clyde Noel

Town Crier Correspondent

In Los Altos and Los Altos Hills, the driveway is one of the most common features of a new house and must to conform to city building specifications.

The driveway is where you park your car, or it’s the entrance to the garage. It’s also where the basketball hoop keeps the kids busy after school.

Now’s the time of year to review the cracks and breakdowns before winter comes. Driveway enemies are rain and freeze/thaw cycle we can get in the Bay Area.

Without maintenance, your pavement investment is money down the drain and the longer you wait the more costly the repairs become.

Talking to contractors, the biggest cost of putting in a new driveway is the labor. Getting the area ready to surface with the grading and compacting of native soil and the placement of sub-base materials is the majority of the cost.

Contractors say depending on the condition of the present driveway, the costs can be between $1 and $4 per square foot.

That depends on how much has to be taken out and whether there are tree roots involved.

Typical surface materials are asphalt, concrete or interlocking pavers.

Each offer distinct advantages or drawbacks.

Concrete is the most common driveway surface, but it shrinks when it dries and can crack in the process of curing.

Avoiding cracks is why homeowners turn to a contractors to pour the driveway.

Asphalt offers a slightly flexible and rougher surface and is much cheaper than concrete. Its biggest fault is when water gets in the sub-base it and washes it away and causes the asphalt to collapse and crack.

Interlocking pavers are used for driveways. They are made in designs and are easy to install.

If you are going to do any work on the driveway, the city requires a permit before you begin the project.

If there is a homeowner’s organization, you have to research any restrictions on what you can do with the driveway.

Driveways come in all sizes and for different lengths. Evidence to that fact is the long curved 10-foot driveways in Los Altos Hills and the short one-lane driveway with a basketball hoop in Los Altos.