A road is only as good as what's under it. We strip the topsoil, cut and fill to grade, shape the drainage and prepare the subgrade for gravel or paving on private roads, long driveways and access lanes.
Roadway Excavation in Boise and the Treasure Valley
Not every road is a city street. A lot of what we dig is a private lane to a new house on acreage, a long driveway to a shop, an access road to a pasture or a shared road that serves a few lots. These roads carry loaded trucks, horse trailers, fire engines and school buses, and they have to hold up through a wet spring.
We do roadway excavation in Boise, Star, Kuna, Eagle, Middleton, Nampa, Parma and Caldwell, mostly on private property.
What Roadway Excavation Means
It's the dirt work that comes before the surface. We clear the route, strip topsoil, cut high spots, fill low ones and shape the roadbed so water runs off it. Then we prepare the subgrade, the firm layer the gravel or pavement sits on. If it isn't right, nothing built on top of it will be.
Laying Out the Route
A good road follows the land. We look at the grade, the natural drainage, the trees and the places where the road has to cross a ditch or swale. A small change in the line can save a lot of cutting and filling, and can keep the road out of a wet low spot. We stake the route so you can see it before we dig.
Cut, Fill and Grade
On sloped ground, we cut into the high side and use that dirt to fill the low side. Steeper grades are harder to drive and harder to keep from washing out in storms and snowmelt. Some fire districts also set rules for the width, grade and turnaround on long drives, so check with yours if the road leads to a house. If there's extra dirt, we can haul it with our dirt hauling service.
Drainage Is Most of the Job
The most common reason a road fails is water. We crown the road, which means it's higher in the center, or slope it to one side so water runs off instead of down the tracks. Ditches along the edge carry it away, and culverts let it cross under the road where it has to. See culvert installation and ditch digging. Where water runs fast, our erosion control work keeps it from cutting into the road.
Subgrade and Soft Spots
We dig down through topsoil and organic material to firm ground. Treasure Valley clay holds water and gets soft in spring, and a road built on it will rut under trucks. Soft spots get dug out and replaced with compacted fill or rock, and in bad spots a fabric layer under the gravel helps spread the load. See our soil compaction page.
Gravel, Pavement and What Comes Next
We build the roadbed and the gravel base. The base thickness depends on what drives on the road and how soft the ground is. A road for family cars needs less than one used by loaded trucks. Paving is done by a paving contractor, and we can prepare the base for it. Our paving job site preparation page explains that step. If you're building a driveway rather than a road, see excavation for driveways.
Permits, Easements and Right of Way
Roads on your own land usually don't need a permit, but there are exceptions. A new access onto a public road, a driveway approach or work in the right of way needs approval from the highway district, county or city. A road that crosses a ditch or canal needs the ditch owner's OK. Shared roads and easements should be written down and agreed with the neighbors who use them. We call Digline (811) before any digging.
Roads for Subdivisions and Larger Projects
For larger projects, such as several lots on a shared lane or a small subdivision, roadwork is part of bigger earthwork. See our subdivision earthworks page.
Why Call Ultimate Excavation LLC
We're an Idaho registered contractor (RCE-65836) based in Caldwell, with a 5.0 rating on Google. Our reviews say we show up on time and communicate clearly. For a road, tell us how long it is, where it starts and ends, what will use it and what the ground is like. Call (208) 697-2429 or request a free estimate.
