Bristol Township, PA Parking Rules: Loading Zones (2026)

Section 205-122 is the zoning rule for loading on private lots in Bristol Township, and it is triggered by what the use does: any use hereafter established or enlarged which customarily receives or distributes goods or materials by trucks must provide off-street loading facilities. The facilities must be sufficient to accommodate the maximum number of trucks that will normally be loading, unloading, or stored on the premises at any one time, and they must be on the same lot or parcel as the use they serve.

Design is specific: loading areas need adequate maneuvering space and must be arranged so they work without blocking or interfering with automobile accessways, parking facilities, fire lanes or pedestrian ways, and without backing out onto a street. All off-street loading facilities go to the side or rear of the building, and they cannot be counted toward the off-street parking requirement. Once built, the facilities must be provided and maintained as long as the use exists, and they cannot be reduced in total extent except with Zoning Hearing Board approval and proof that the reduction conforms with the chapter.

Owners are also expected to take reasonable precautions to keep the berths available to the delivery and pickup vehicles they were designed to serve. Lighting of loading areas can be required at the discretion of Council, and any artificial lighting must be arranged so that no direct rays fall upon neighboring property or streets. A table in subsection H sets the required berths or spaces by use category and floor area, with separate lines for business and professional offices, food stores and retail department stores, and wholesale and other uses. The section regulates the design and location of private loading berths and prints no hours of operation.