Driveways & Access Roads
Driveway clearing and access roads in New Brunswick
The corridor cut, grubbed, ditched and shaped so a loaded truck can reach you in April, not just in July. Driveways, camp roads, woodlot access and trails.
The step people skip
Access is the cheapest problem to solve and the most expensive to ignore
Every spring somebody has a lot cleared, a foundation crew booked, and no way to get a concrete truck to the site. The clearing was fine. The access was an afterthought, and now the whole project is waiting on ground that won't carry a load.
Access work is also the most efficient thing we do. A corridor is linear — the machine moves forward in a line rather than grinding back and forth over an area — so per foot it costs a fraction of clearing the equivalent square footage.
Which means the driveway is usually the cheapest insurance on the whole project, and it's the line item most often cut.
Finished corridorStraight down a newly cut driveway line, running away from camera into the trees.
Corridor work
What we cut
New driveways
Corridor cleared, grubbed, subgrade cut, ditches pulled and culverts set — ready for gravel and ready for deliveries.
Camp & cottage access
Getting a vehicle to a camp site, often across the hardest ground on the property.
Woodlot & field roads
Access into the back of a property for equipment, firewood, or simply to be able to get there.
ATV & UTV trails
Recreational trails cut to a width that suits your machine, with overhead clearance so they stay open.
Walking trails
Narrower corridors for walking the property, hunting access, or a loop through the woods behind the house.
Right-of-ways & easements
Utility corridors, private road allowances and easements kept clear of encroaching growth.
Before we cut
Four things to settle at the walk-through
Width — and be generous
Everyone underestimates. About 20 ft of cleared corridor for a 12 ft driveway; 6–8 ft for a quad trail; 10–12 ft for a side-by-side. Widening later means mobilizing a machine again for a small job.
Where the water goes
Route matters more than surface. Along a contour, it drains. Straight down a slope, it becomes a gully in one spring. We'll walk the line with you and route around the wet ground rather than through it.
Watercourse crossings
Within 30 metres of a brook or wetland you need a provincial permit before anything happens, and culvert sizing is regulated. Identified at the quote, not discovered mid-job.
What it has to carry
An ATV trail rides fine on mulch. A driveway taking a concrete truck in April needs ditching, culverts and gravel. Different scope, different price, and we'll tell you which one you actually need.
Mulch is a surface, not a road base
Two to four inches of chip makes a good trail and a fine seasonal lane. It does not make a road that carries loaded trucks through a New Brunswick spring. Where you need a real road, mulching clears the corridor and excavation builds the base.
Straight answers
Driveway & access questions
How wide should a driveway corridor be cleared?
Wider than the driving surface. A 12-foot driveway wants about 20 feet of cleared corridor — room for ditching on both sides, somewhere for the plow to put snow, and enough daylight that the surface actually dries out after rain.
Clearing tight to the driving lane is a false economy. It holds water, it holds ice, the plow has nowhere to go, and you'll be paying to widen it inside a few years.
Do I need culverts?
Wherever the route crosses a ditch, a low spot or any running water. Size and installation matter — an undersized culvert backs water up and washes the road out in the first heavy spring.
Anything within 30 metres of a watercourse or wetland needs a provincial Watercourse and Wetland Alteration Permit before the work happens, and a crossing definitely qualifies. We'll identify those at the quote so it doesn't stop the job halfway.
Can the driveway be used before it's gravelled?
In summer, on firm ground, often yes. In spring, no — and that's exactly when the concrete truck and the lumber delivery need to get in.
If deliveries are coming, budget for the subgrade and gravel rather than hoping. A stuck truck costs more than the gravel would have.
What about a road into the back of my property?
One of our most common jobs — a camp road, woodlot access, or a lane to the back field. Mulched to width with the chip left as an initial surface, which is fine for an ATV or a truck in dry conditions.
If it has to carry a loaded vehicle year-round, it needs ditching, culverts and gravel like any other road. We'll tell you which parts of the route need that rather than pretending mulch alone makes a road.
How wide for an ATV or side-by-side trail?
Six to eight feet of cleared width is comfortable for a quad; ten to twelve for a side-by-side, and more on the corners. Clear the overhead too — eight feet of vertical clearance keeps branches off windshields and stops the trail closing in from above within two seasons.
Does the route matter more than the surface?
Considerably. A road that runs along a contour drains; one that runs straight down a slope becomes a gully in a single spring. Routing around wet ground beats building through it every time, and it's free to decide at the walk-through stage.
Related services
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Get the access sorted before the deliveries start
Driveways, camp roads and trails cleared across southeastern New Brunswick. Free on-site quote.