ORLANDO, Fla. – The buses have arrived.
On Wednesday, Mayor Buddy Dyer joined city commissioners and the Christian Service Center to unveil 407 Connect, a program with two mobile homeless shelters, made from retrofitted charter-style buses.
The new initiative is aimed at providing safe overnight accommodations and connecting individuals experiencing homelessness to housing resources.
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Through 407 Connect, two custom-designed 45-foot buses are used to provide insulated sleeping pods, restrooms, storage compartments, and onboard security personnel.
Together, the buses will offer overnight refuge for 42 individuals each night.
In addition to shelter, the buses provide case management services to help support the transition of unsheltered residents into permanent housing.
The program is modeled after the “Dignity Bus” project, which was created by a Vero Beach-based non-profit organization called “The Source.”
[WATCH: Meet the nonprofit behind Orlando’s new homeless buses]
The city said the program has proven to be an effective approach to addressing unsheltered homelessness by offering dignified, secure, and mobile accommodations to those in need.
The cost to purchase each bus was $175,000, with annual operating expenses estimated at about $1 million.
Orlando’s buses are 45-foot 2006 VDL Van Hool C2045 motor coaches bought with funds from the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act that were purchased using part of the program’s $3.44 million allocation.
The buses will be operated by the Christian Service Center with pick-up and drop-off each day at its location at 808 W. Central Blvd.
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