Bristol Township, PA Tree Protection: Parkway Planting (2026)

Two parts of the Bristol Township Code govern street tree planting. Section 177-51A sits in the Subdivision and Land Development chapter and sets the standards for new development. Within any land development or subdivision, street trees go along both sides of all streets where suitable existing street trees or natural wooded areas do not exist. Plantings are also required along both sides of access driveways serving five or more residential dwellings, along access driveways serving two or more nonresidential properties, and along major walkways through parking lots and between nonresidential buildings.

Spacing depends on tree size, using the size classes in the approved list: large trees 50 feet apart, medium trees 40 feet apart and small trees 25 feet apart. A developer can instead plant an equivalent number of trees in an informal arrangement acceptable to the Bristol Township Shade Tree Commission. Street trees do not face each other across the street; they alternate. At intersections, trees sit no closer than 30 feet from the intersection of the street right-of-way lines, and no closer than 15 feet from a driveway entrance. Trees are planted five feet behind and parallel to the future right-of-way line, and a temporary ten-foot-wide landscaping easement measured from that line is built into the plan.

The approved planting list in § 177-51A(2) groups species by mature height, with large trees defined as over 45 feet at maturity. Red Maple, Ginkgo (male), Thornless Honeylocust and White Oak appear among the large trees. The code asks that plantings sit where they will not create hazards, naming the sight triangle areas at street intersections.

Planting inside an existing public highway is a separate step. Under § 186-4B no shade tree can be planted on any public highway, street or road in Bristol Township until a permit is granted, and the permit designates the place where the tree is to be planted. The Commission can refuse a permit for any species it considers unsuited to the location.