Having experienced homelessness, he built a bike camper
CBC
Jeffory Beland knows, maybe more than most, that the bike camper he built won't address London's challenges with homelessness.
But having spent a short period of his life sleeping rough outside and seeing the situation grow worse on London's streets, he wanted to create something that might help, even if only a little bit.
"This is shelter," said Beland. "If you feel like you have no place to go and you feel like the only safe place is to break into a stranger's car to get out of a bad storm, this is a portable little home."
To build his miniature, pedal-powered mobile home, Beland started with a three-wheel 1950s-style bike and added an attached camper, complete with a seating area that can convert into a bed. The camper walls are fabricated from aluminum siding and fashioned into an aerodynamic shape that's reminiscent of an Airstream travel trailer.
The bike's frame has been extended backward to accommodate the passenger area. Inside, the seats slide down to covert into a small cot. Behind the camper is attached a fold-out barbecue, a sink connected to a water reservoir and a trailer to store coolers for food. The bike has a headlight, a solar panel and two electrical outlets that can supply the trailer with power when it's plugged into an electrical receptacle. He's rigged an electric hair dryer to heat the camper on chilly nights.
The windows have curtains, there's an awning for shade, and the camper can lift off the back end of the bike to free up more cargo space.
Beland is handy — a self-described "Jeff of all trades" — and said the bike took about 150 hours to build. He was able to find and repurpose most of the materials on the bike.
He believes the bike could be an upgrade for anyone who's sleeping outside.
"It's a way to get the tents off the street and to get the people up off the ground," said Beland. "Getting off that cold, damp ground, that's a game-changer."
Beland is selling the camper with a posted price of $3,250. He says if someone is willing to donate that amount, he'd give the bike to someone in need and use money from the sale to pay for materials to build another camper, which he would also give away.
The Facebook listing for his bike camper has been met with skepticism, but he's undeterred. Beland sees the camper bike as a concept that could be replicated by a manufacturer. He figures if a camper bike inspired by the one he built could be cheaply massed-produced, it might give someone another besides sleeping in a doorway or on the ground under a tarp.
"There's always haters," he said. "I believe this is something that could help people."
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