VERO BEACH, Fla. – A pair of buses is about to roll into Central Florida, but they won’t be picking up commuters or be part of our public transportation network.

Instead, they’ll be offering something far more vital: a safe night’s sleep.

“We’re a little more excited to do this bus than probably all the other ones,” said Anthony Rommell, who helped build the custom motor coaches. “(And) it’s not just one – there’s going to be two.”

Those two buses are the centerpiece of 407 Connect, a new initiative aiming to make a dent in Orlando’s homelessness crisis through innovation and compassion.

Custom-designed by The Source, a Vero Beach-based nonprofit, the so-called “Dignity Buses” will soon offer overnight shelter with a twist: they’re mobile, private, air-conditioned vehicles customized by people who know homelessness firsthand.

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They are designed to get homeless people off the street by providing space for a good night’s sleep in a controlled and comfortable environment.

“This is more than a bus,” Rommell said. “It’s a safe place.”

The first bus will be ready in the next few weeks – The Source’s second build for 407 Connect will be ready to enter service shortly thereafter. Funding for 407 Connect was made possible through a public/private partnership between the City of Orlando’s Community Redevelopment Agency and the Christian Service Center for the Homeless.

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The program is a stepping stone to a broader plan to help combat homelessness that’s pretty straightforward: create a safe, mobile space to sleep, give people a foundation to build on, and move forward from there. Each person who uses the bus will receive support from CSC’s case management team to help them find permanent housing.

The two 45-foot Orlando-bound motor coaches are The Source’s sixth and seventh builds. Three buses are up and running in Vero Beach, and two are in service out of state.

And they’re all slightly different.

“I would have never thought we’d have three buses here, one in Rhode Island, one in Illinois, and two going to Orlando,” said Tony Zorbaugh, executive director of The Source.

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According to Zorbaugh, The Source created the first mobile sleep bus for homeless people in the country shortly after the pandemic began back in 2021, able to sleep 16. Bus No. 2 had sleeping accommodations for 19, and Bus No. 3 slept 20. The 407 Connect buses will also have sleeping pods for 20 people, with one more pod fully accessible via a rear wheelchair lift. Bunk beds line both walls, and individual cubbies for personal belongings are tucked underneath.

Some of the previous builds by The Source incorporated a washer-dryer set, running water, and on one bus, a triple bunk. The out-of-state buses for Illinois and Rhode Island were outfitted with beefed-up heating elements, and each converted bus has a distinct exterior design.

Team members learn something different from each project and adapt as they go along.

“The whole thing for (this build) was: how can we go about getting more room on the bus?” Rommell said. “Because all our other buses have been so compact and tight. So, we think we figured it out.”

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The Source was founded as a soup kitchen but has grown into something much larger. It now provides transitional housing, work opportunities, and support services for people experiencing homelessness. It’s also become something of an unlikely customization shop gutting, designing, and rebuilding long-haul coaches into mobile sanctuaries.

Rommell told News 6 that he brings his stepfather’s carpentry lessons to the job.

“He taught me everything I know to this point,” Rommell said. “If it wasn’t for him, I probably wouldn’t be where I’m at now.”

Kyle McNeill, the other half of The Source’s interior build team, has seen the program from both sides.

“Yeah, I was homeless,” McNeill said as he told the story of how he rode his bicycle from Texas to Florida years ago in search of a new start.

“Lack of ID, no way to get it. Of course, it was post-pandemic time, so when I came to The Source, I didn’t know about having a bus to sleep on. I gave it a shot one night and I ended up sleeping on it for five months.”

McNeil entered The Source’s maintenance program and eventually moved into permanent housing. Now, he builds out the bus interiors to help others.

“It’s humbling,” McNeill told us. “Even though I don’t know them, I never see them, but I know they’re out there. And I know they get the benefit of sleeping safely.”

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