Pavement (American English) or road surface (British English) is the durable surface material laid down on an area intended to sustain traffic (vehicular or foot traffic). Such surfaces are frequently marked to guide traffic.

The most common modern paving methods are asphalt and concrete. In the past, brick was extensively used, as was metaling. Today, permeable paving methods are beginning to be used more for low-impact roadways and walkways.

Garden Paving

Paving, however, is the term to describe the 'flooring' usually associated with gardens and houses. Garden Paving is an important feature that must not be overlooked.

If you have any outdoor buildings in your garden, or around the house garden paving can make them accessible to the people that use them. Conservatories are not a problem as they are built as an extension to the house. But if you have a shed, or a summerhouse then it is well-worth investing in garden paving in order to make the available facilities more accessible.

Because of the nature of summerhouses (to relax and enjoy peace and tranquillity in the garden) the chances are that you are going to use it all year round and therefore in bad weather you do not want to have to walk through mud and wet grass in order to get to it, especially as they are wood and will stain.

Also if you have guests, garden paving is a great way to guide them through your garden, especially if you have a large garden. You can use the garden paving as paths to the features contained within the garden that you would like people to see.

Paving Designs

There are many different Paving Designs, ranging from small tiles that must be place together a certain way and can include patterns, to simply laying concrete on a set path.

The most popular and artistic paving design is paving slabs, which are quite inexpensive and can be positioned wherever you want them.

Paving slabs come in many different paving designs, shapes, sizes and colours so you are likely to find some that fit in with the theme of your garden.

The more picturesque paving designs slabs can be placed in a certain way so as to create pretty patterns and shapes. The great thing about paving slabs is that they are very customisable and very easy to lay.

Concrete Paving

Concrete paving (specifically, Portland cement concrete) are created using a concrete mix of Portland cement, gravel, and sand. The material is applied in a freshly-mixed slurry, and worked mechanically to compact the interior and force some of the thinner cement slurry to the surface. This gives concrete paving a smoother, denser surface free from honeycombing.