Parking pavers are paving systems built to support parked and moving vehicles, and permeable parking pavers do that while keeping the surface green or gravel and letting water drain through. For overflow lots, event parking, and green parking areas, grass and gravel pavers provide firm, organized parking without the heat, runoff, and expanse of solid asphalt.

NDS EZ Marker delineators outline parking stalls in paver cells.

What are parking pavers?

Parking pavers (or parking lot pavers) are surfaces engineered to carry the loads of a parking area. Permeable versions — grass parking pavers and gravel pavers — use a reinforcement grid to support vehicles while keeping the surface porous and green or natural. A grass parking lot built this way looks like landscape but functions as parking, which is ideal where a sea of asphalt would be unwelcome or where stormwater rules limit hard paving.

How the grid carries load

The reinforcing grid is installed over a compacted, free-draining base. It carries vehicle and foot loads and transfers that weight to the base, so the fill inside the cells — soil and grass, or gravel — is protected from compaction and rutting. Water infiltrates through the surface into the base and soil below, making the system both load-bearing and permeable.

Organizing the lot with EZ Marker

One challenge with a grass or gravel parking lot is marking stalls and lanes — you cannot just paint lines on grass. NDS EZ Marker solves this: the delineators snap into the empty cells of the EZ Roll pavers to outline driving lanes, parking stalls, and fire lanes. They are durable, tamper-resistant, and available in colors to signal grass parking, gravel parking, or fire-lane access, so the lot stays organized and safe.

NDS EZ Roll grass pavers form a green parking surface.

Why use permeable parking pavers

• Stormwater compliance: permeable parking reduces runoff and impervious area.
• Cooler lots: grass and gravel do not bake like asphalt.
• Green overflow parking: areas used occasionally for parking stay attractive as landscape the rest of the time.
• Organized and safe: EZ Marker delineators keep lanes and stalls clear.

Where parking pavers are used

They suit overflow and event parking, green parking lots at parks and campuses, fire lanes, and any lot where reducing runoff and heat matters. The EZ Roll system covers large lots quickly, Tufftrack handles the heaviest traffic, and EZ Marker organizes the layout.

Installation: base prep and steps

NDS EZ Roll Grass Pavers are designed to be placed on an engineer-specified compacted base. The base is what carries the vehicle load, so base preparation is the most important part of the job. A typical sequence:

1. Excavate. Remove unsuitable soil and excavate deep enough for the aggregate base plus the paver and soil. Longview's product guidance calls for a 4 to 6 inch aggregate base directly below the pavers; without that base a "cookie cutter" effect occurs as the pavers punch into soft ground.
2. Place the base course. Use a free-draining aggregate (NDS suggests AASHTO #57 stone or a local equivalent), placed over the prepared subgrade in lifts not exceeding 6 inches.
3. Compact each lift. Compact every lift separately to a minimum of 95 percent Modified Proctor density, so the base is firm and uniform before the pavers go down.
4. Optional sandy loam layer. An engineer may add about 2 inches of sandy loam between the paver and the gravel base; if so, place a non-woven geotextile filter fabric between the sandy loam and the base to keep fines from migrating into the stone.
5. Roll out and connect the pavers. Unroll the mat over the prepared base; the top-down locking tabs snap together with no tools, and each 2 by 2 foot section has 72 honeycomb cells.
6. Stake the pavers. Anchor with the supplied stakes (each roll ships with 40 stakes, 12 inch by 3/8 inch galvanized, NDS part GPSTAKE), following the recommended staking pattern. Use edge restraints at borders to prevent creep.
7. Fill with soil and plant. Fill the cells to the top surface with sandy loam or loam soil (sand is not acceptable), leaving a minimum of 1-1/2 inches for grass pavers and soil. Seed, sod, or hydroseed, and plant within 30 days of installing the pavers.
8. Establish before traffic. Keep vehicles off until the grass is sufficiently established to handle traffic.

The rigid Tufftrack pavers follow the same base logic — a compacted, free-draining aggregate base placed in lifts and compacted, then a lightly compacted planting base, with the 2 by 2 foot units laid and interlocked over the top and filled with soil and grass. Because Tufftrack is 1-1/2 inch thick and rigid, it suits the heavier or more frequent loads where you want extra stiffness underfoot.

NDS EZ Roll Gravel Pavers install much like the grass version, but the rolls go down fabric-side-down and the cells are filled with gravel instead of soil and grass. A typical sequence:

1. Prepare and compact the base. Excavate and place a free-draining aggregate base; base course thickness depends on the native soil and the anticipated wheel loads. Compact the base with one to three passes of a 5-ton steel wheel roller or equivalent.
2. Consult a geotechnical engineer for weak soils. For poor subgrades (CBR under 5 percent or R-value under 10), NDS recommends the engineer of record consult a geotechnical engineer about soil modification and compaction.
3. Roll out fabric-side-down. The pavers come with a thermally welded geotextile (Typar) fabric that prevents gravel from migrating downward and is porous for stormwater. Lay one roll first, then pull the edge of the adjacent roll snug against it and connect the lateral snap locks.
4. Leave clearance and stake. Leave a 1 inch minimum clearance between the pavers and fixed objects or structures, and stake per the recommended pattern (stakes are included).
5. Fill with gravel. Fill the cells with gravel to finish the surface; the cells confine the stone so it cannot rut or migrate.

Load and durability specs

For context on why the base matters, the EZ Roll pavers have an unfilled compressive strength in the range of about 53,683 to 57,890 psf and are rated to support H-20 and H-25 vehicle loads, with a life expectancy around 25 years when well maintained. Each paver weighs about 2.31 pounds and is made of HDPE with UV inhibitors. Those load ratings assume a properly prepared and compacted base, which is why the base-prep steps above are not optional.

For complete installation specifications, download the official NDS EZ Roll Grass Pavers Installation Guide (PDF).

Frequently Asked Questions