Bensalem, PA Landscaping Rules: Tree Trimming (2026)

Sec. 215-5 of the Bensalem Township Code sets minimum overhead clearances for trees along public rights-of-way: nine feet where branches overhang a public walk, and 11 feet where they overhang or project into a public street or highway right-of-way. The Shade Tree Commission can designate a higher clearance on particular highways where heavy traffic or other conditions make it expedient. The duty to trim falls on the private property owner whose trees, plants or shrubs have branches projecting into or over a public highway or right-of-way; the owner must keep them trimmed so no portion extends below the minimum clearance, or any higher clearance the Commission specifies.

If the owner neglects or refuses to trim after the Commission gives written notice to do so, the Commission may wait until the date specified in that notice passes and then have the trimming done at the owner's expense. The entire cost of that Township-performed trimming becomes a lien on the property, filed and collected in the same manner as other municipal claims under Pennsylvania municipal claims law. This clearance duty sits within the same Chapter 215 framework as the Shade Tree Commission's permitting authority over public trees (Sec. 215-4) and its diseased-tree removal power (Sec. 215-6), and violations of the chapter carry the Sec. 215-9 penalty.