Block Captains and Street Representatives

The Highway Division builds and maintains 2,040 miles of this system.

The Sanitation Division collects and disposes of approximately 790,000 tons of rubbish a year.

The Highway and Sanitation Division work together in salting and plowing 2,290 miles of streets.

The Philadelphia More Beautiful Committee (PMBC), part of the Streets Department's Sanitation Division, began in 1965 as part of the ``Clean-Up, Paint-Up, Fix-Up" initiative. Over the years, this initiative has evolved into an urban environmental partnership between city government and approximately 6,500 Block Captains and their organized blocks. PMBC has become the most workable approach to combating neighborhood grime with organized block cleanings and beautification efforts, and has grown to be one of the largest volunteer organizations of its kind in the country.

   

 Starting with a few hundred clean-ups in the early years, cleaning and beautification activities have increased to over 9,000 each year. Over 90,000 volunteers, including Block Captains and their neighbors, community groups and their units, fill approximately 110,000 bags during their cleaning activities each year.

 

PMBC is a true example of a partnership that promotes civic pride, public safety, and neighborhood empowerment among the thousands of volunteers working to keep their communities and this city, clean and safe.