In Bitterne, Tarmac & Asphalt is built around sloping ground east of the Itchen valley: hot-rolled asphalt compacted over a prepared sub-base into a single dense, flat surface. Bitterne’s own driveways are shaped by plots with a genuine fall, where getting the drainage right matters more than the surface chosen. That makes it a strong fit for larger driveways that can achieve a proper fall to a drainage point — worth knowing that standard tarmac is impermeable, so the drainage fall has to be built in at construction. There is also the Itchen-valley slope, which affects how drainage runs across the plot 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 Bitterne
Bitterne sits on sloping ground east of the River Itchen, and the 1930s to 1960s semis that make up most of the area often have a noticeable fall across the plot. On ground like this, getting the falls and drainage right matters more to how a driveway performs long-term than which surface material is chosen.
Coastal / flood note: Itchen-valley slope affecting drainage runs