SCOPE Impact

Since 2007, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has required local Continuums of Care (CoCs) to conduct an annual point-in-time (PIT) count of people experiencing homelessness. To assess its efforts in reducing homelessness, SCOPE (Safety, Cleaning, Ownership, Partnership, and Engagement) implemented a similar count of individuals experiencing homelessness on its system.

In January 2022, our count revealed a total of 562 individuals taking shelter on SEPTA’s system, including on vehicles and in stations. A similar count in February 2023 identified 363 individuals. These findings demonstrate that the SCOPE program successfully reduced the number of individuals seeking shelter within SEPTA’s systems by 35% in one year. In January 2024, a subsequent count showed another nearly 14% decrease in homelessness on the SEPTA system.

In addition to the annual homeless count, SCOPE tracks every interaction its outreach teams, which are deployed throughout the system, have with the vulnerable population. Monthly progress reports measure SCOPE’s impact by recording the number of engagements, referrals, resource distributions, and “warm hand-offs.”

CountyUnsheltered Count 2022Unsheltered Count 2023Unsheltered Count 2024
Bucks000
Chester010
Delaware954147
Montgomery191621
Philadelphia437279244
Trenton TC11262
Totals562363314
SEPTA’s annual homeless population count for 2022 thru 2024. SCOPE efforts have helped to reduce homelessness on its system by 35% in 2022 and nearly 14% in 2023.

SCOPE’s Progress, August 2024

13,631
Engagements

*6,775 Unique Engagements

In which an individual was guided off SEPTA’s system and possibly into services.

1,585
Referrals

Where individuals were referred for mental health, drug or alcohol treatment, shelters, or other social services.

119
Warm Hand-Offs

In which SEPTA outreach teams physically connected a vulnerable individual with a social service provider.

32
Narcan Deployments

Narcan is a treatment that reverses an opioid overdose. With opioid overdoses on the rise in Philadelphia, this is essential work.

1,140 Smokers Stopped
*1,355 Number of Smokers Engaged

SEPTA strives to provide a smoke free ride for passengers. All individuals seen smoking are asked to stop for the duration they are on SEPTA property.