Concrete Driveway Building in Cambridge MA - a slab that drains away from your garage
Cracked, sinking or puddling by the garage? We dig out, pack the base and pour a new driveway graded so water runs off.
- Fully licensed and insured.
- Free on-site estimates.
- Replies within 1 business day.
What goes into building a new concrete driveway in Cambridge?
Concrete driveway building in Cambridge means digging out the soft ground, packing a firm base, setting the grade so water runs away from your garage and then pouring and finishing a new slab. When the opening in the street curb has to be made or changed, the city's approval sets the start date, so most driveways here are planned weeks ahead.
At M&K Cambridge Concrete Company, most driveway calls start with an old slab that's cracked, sinking at the edges or holding water at the garage door, or with a lot where you'd like to park on something better than gravel. The price mostly moves with the size of the driveway, how much old concrete and loose fill has to come out, how much base the ground needs and whether the curb opening is new or changing. The schedule turns on the city's curb cut approval when you need one and on the weather. I write all of that into the estimate, with what's included and what isn't, so you see your own figure before anything starts.
How can you tell your driveway needs replacing?
Cracks that keep spreading
A crack that widens or grows a ledge from one season to the next usually means the ground under it is moving, often because the base was raked level instead of dug out and packed. Waiting lets water get into the crack and freeze, which breaks off a little more every winter.
Edges sinking or crumbling
When the sides of the driveway drop below the lawn or break into chunks, the support under the edges has usually washed out or settled. Tires keep riding that edge, so a section you could have caught early often turns into a full tear-out.
Water pooling by the garage
Puddles that sit at the garage door or along the house mean the slab has sunk or was poured falling the wrong way. That water works its way into the garage and toward the foundation, and in winter it turns into a sheet of ice right where you step out.
How we handle concrete driveway building, from the ground up
Our crew breaks out the old slab and hauls it away, then digs out the soft dirt, roots and loose fill until we reach firm ground, because the subgrade, the ground the slab sits on, is what actually holds it up. We pack that ground, add a gravel base and pack it in layers, then set the forms so the finished surface falls away from the garage and the house, which is the part of the job I check twice. Where the slab calls for it we lay rebar, steel bars inside the concrete that keep any cracks tight, and we pour in the cooler part of the day, since a pour in midday heat can leave a weak, dusty top. We give it a broom finish, a light brushed texture so tires and boots grip in the rain, and cut control joints, shallow grooves that tell the slab where to crack so it happens in a straight line we chose instead of across the middle. Then we let it cure, keeping it damp and off-limits while it hardens, because rushing that wait is how a good pour ends up weak. When a budget gets tight, the base is where people want to cut, since nobody sees it once the concrete's down, but I'd rather trim the finish than the base, because a nice surface on soft ground just settles with the dirt.
Driveway jobs often come with other flatwork, the ground-level slabs like walks and patios, so it's worth thinking about the rest of the yard before the trucks come. If you want somewhere to sit out back, we can price a concrete patio in the same estimate, and if you'd like the edges or the apron to look like brick or stone, stamped concrete can run a pattern along them.
Replacing an old driveway
This suits you if the slab is cracked, sunk or draining toward the garage. We break it out, rebuild the base and regrade, because pouring new concrete over the old problem just copies the problem.
A new or wider driveway
This suits a lot with grass or gravel where you want to park, or a driveway that needs more room for a second car. It usually means a new or changed curb cut, so the city's approval sets when we can start.
Get an itemized estimate for your new driveway
Send the form or call, and we'll get back to you within one business day to set up a visit. The estimate is free, done on site, and you're under no obligation to go ahead.
(617) 613-6953- Based in
- Cambridge, MA 02139
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 7 AM–9 PM, Sat–Sun: 6 AM–9 PM
What happens after you call about a driveway in Cambridge?
Here's how a driveway job runs from your side, from the first call to the day we pack up, and what you'll have in hand along the way.
Call or send us a message
Phone us at (617) 613-6953 or use the form with a few lines about the driveway. We get back to you and set a time for me to come out.
I measure and write it up
I measure, look at where water runs now and ask how you use the driveway, then write an estimate that lists what's included and what isn't. You know what you're paying for before you decide, and you can line it up against any other quote.
We get approvals and set dates
If you need a new or changed curb cut, the city's approval usually takes about four to six weeks when it moves smoothly and the City Council isn't in recess, and the city warns against spending money on the work before the Council approves it. So we set the start date after approval and plan the pour around the weather, which keeps you from paying ahead of it.
We pour, finish and clean up
Our crew works inside the city's hours for residential construction, Monday to Friday 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturdays 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., since Sunday and holiday work needs a special permit from the police. When the slab's finished, we clean up and go over when you can start using it.
Why Cambridge homeowners call M&K Cambridge Concrete Company for driveways
The owner at estimate and pour
I come out for every estimate myself, and I'm on site with our crew while the work gets done. The person who measured your grade is the one standing there when the forms get set, so nothing gets lost between the quote and the pour.
Learned the trade on a crew
I started out setting forms and pushing wheelbarrows for a small crew until I could finish slabs myself, then opened this business in 2023. Having done every job on a crew, I know which shortcuts show up a winter later.
Licensed and insured on every pour
We're fully licensed and insured. That matters on a driveway, because the work runs right up against your house, your garage and the city sidewalk.
Water traced before we grade
I walk the lot to see where water goes now, and for small projects that fall outside its stormwater rules, the city encourages checking drainage and suggests options like dry wells, rain gardens or less paved area. We can talk through whether one fits your yard, so runoff from the new slab doesn't end up in your basement or next door.
On a driveway, the part that decides how it holds up is the part you won't see once it's poured, so call or send us a message and I'll come take a look at yours.
Building driveways and curb cuts in Cambridge
If your driveway needs a new opening in the curb, or the old one has to move or close, the City of Cambridge has to issue a permit before anyone touches it. The city caps a curb cut at 20 feet wide in residential districts, allows only one on a lot with less than 100 feet of frontage, and keeps it at least 25 feet from an intersection and farther than 15 feet from a crosswalk, so we lay the driveway out to fit those lines before we price it. I check with the city's building office what else your job needs, and when a permit applies, we take it out ourselves as your contractor and keep it posted at the job site.
Most driveways we build here are narrow runs beside the house on tight lots, with a short slope down to the sidewalk, so the grade has to send water to the street or a planted edge instead of back toward the garage. We see the same tight lots and tired old slabs on jobs in Somerville and Watertown.
Questions about concrete driveways in Cambridge
How much does a concrete driveway cost around Boston?
A concrete driveway in the Boston area usually costs about $3,000 to $15,000 per project. That's the going range in the area, not our price, and a bigger slab, a lot of old concrete to haul off, extra base work or a new curb cut push a job toward the top. Your own figure comes from the estimate I write after measuring.
Can a concrete driveway be poured in winter in Cambridge?
It can, as long as the ground under it isn't frozen. Cold-weather concrete guidance is to pour only on a thawed base, because a slab placed on frozen ground is likely to settle unevenly and crack once it thaws. If you're planning a cold-season job, ask how the crew will make sure the base is thawed first, and I'll tell you how we'd handle yours or whether waiting makes more sense.
What is the best concrete for a driveway that freezes and thaws?
Air-entrained concrete, which has tiny air bubbles mixed through it, is what a ready-mix concrete association advises for any slab that gets wet and goes through freezing and thawing, and a Cambridge driveway does both every winter. You can't see the mix once it's poured, so ask each contractor, us included, whether the quote uses it.
How do I protect a new concrete driveway in its first winter?
Skip the deicing salt and spread sand for traction instead, which is what an Illinois ready-mix concrete association advises for new concrete in its first winter. Sand won't melt anything, but it gives you grip without putting the new surface through salt in its first season.
How long does a new concrete driveway need before I can drive on it?
Longer than it needs before you can walk on it, because concrete keeps gaining strength after it's firm enough for feet, and its color or how hard it feels tells you nothing about whether it's ready for a car. Even once you start parking on it, keep tires off the edges and corners for a while.
Does a driveway for a truck or trailer need to be built differently?
It can, because heavier loads, weak ground under the slab, frost or a spot where the driveway meets another structure can call for a different design than a typical car driveway. Tell us about the truck, trailer or delivery traffic when you ask for a quote, so the estimate is written for what the driveway will really carry.
Other concrete work that pairs with a driveway
Concrete patio construction
A patio gives you level ground for a table, chairs and a grill, poured with the same care for base and drainage we give a driveway.
Stamped concrete services
A stamped pattern gives a plain slab the look of brick, slate or stone, and it suits the front walk or apron that guests see first.
Where we build driveways around Cambridge
M&K Cambridge Concrete Company is based in Cambridge, MA, and we work across the cities around it. The 12 cities below each have their own page, including Brookline and Newton, and they aren't the only places we take driveway jobs.
Cambridge, MA
Get your new driveway measured and priced
If you send your street frontage, whether the curb cut is new or changing and any trucks or heavy loads the driveway will carry, I can check the layout against the city's limits before I come out.