Bristol, PA Business Licensing & Operations: Auto Repair on Residential Property (2026)

The core rule is § 21-141 of the Bristol Borough Code. No person, firm or corporation may lubricate, change oil, repair or service any motor vehicle, or dismantle any vehicle engine, drive train or parts thereof, upon any street, alley, public place or highway located within the Borough of Bristol. The Code carves out three activities: emergency road service is permitted, and washing, waxing and changing of tires are also permitted. In a dense borough where most homes front the public street, that means a driveway-curb oil change or brake job on the street is a violation, while rinsing and waxing a car at the curb is not.

Zoning adds limits on running a business from a residence. Section 27-320, Subsection 7G, treats a home occupation as an accessory use customarily carried on within a dwelling unit or accessory building and clearly incidental and subordinate to residential use. Only one home occupation is permitted per dwelling unit, carried on only by owner-inhabitants and not more than one additional employee. The floor area devoted exclusively to it cannot exceed 25% of the ground floor area of the principal residential structure, or 500 square feet, whichever is less. There can be no outdoor storage or display, and no trucks or similar vehicles for pickup or delivery are allowed. The prohibited-use list excludes any occupation that would customarily require a panel truck, delivery truck or similar vehicle, and bars equipment or processes producing noise, odor, vibration, glare, fumes or light at the property line.

The zoning chapter defines a commercial 'Auto Repair Garage (Major Repairs)' and 'Auto Repair Garage (Minor Repairs)' as their own uses, and the HC-1 District lists both among its uses permitted by right. The home occupation list of fine arts studios, offices, medical offices, dressmaking, beauty parlors, barber shops, real estate offices, insurance offices and similar occupations does not name vehicle repair.

Vehicle storage at home is also regulated. Under the off-street parking rules, only one commercial motor vehicle may park on a residential lot in the R-1, R-1A, R-2 or R-3 Districts, in a visually screened area, and commercial or recreational vehicles without current license plates cannot be parked or stored in a residential district unless inside a completely enclosed accessory building.