The Housetrike: A pedal-powered home

The Housetrike is a cargo bike-based dwelling intended for use by the homeless, refugees and urban nomads.

Its designer hopes the tricycle will give its users an independent, healthy, safe and above all dignified life by addressing the challenges of shelter, income and mobility.

The cargo box transforms quickly and easily into a warm and comfortable bed.

As well as providing shelter, the 500-litre cocoon can be used to store possessions or even earn an income by making deliveries.

The Housetrike is the latest in a line of pedal-powered living spaces. The Foldavan is a lightweight bicycle caravan that collapses for easy storage and towing.

Wooden Widget already produces a range of collapsible boats and sailing dinghies that can be towed behind a bicycle and the Foldavan shares many of the same design principles.

Built from wood, carbon fibre and reinforced PVC cloth, the teardrop-shaped Foldavan has three modes. When being stored, or transported on a car roof rack, it collapses flat. While being towed by a bicycle, it opens to 60 cm – about the same as the width as most handlebars. Once at its destination, it takes less than five minutes to transform the Foldavan into camping mode. Fully-extended, the caravan measures 1.2 m wide and offers over one metre of headroom.

The Foldavan weighs only 30 kg and has a low centre of gravity, which means it can negotiate even quite rough terrain – in high winds, the sides can be unzipped to let the wind pass through.

The Foldavan trailer is available for £30 as a set of plans. It takes about 50 hours to build a Foldavan. The materials needed are easy to find in varying qualities to suit any budget – A Foldavan can be built  for next to nothing using reclaimed timber and secondhand parts.

The carbon footprint of the Foldavan is small because all the materials can be found locally or salvaged. Furthermore, the company plants five trees every time it sells a set of plans.

Custom car designer Andy Saunders built a pedal-powered campervan that boasts four seats, a cooker, sink, table and bed. The donor vehicles for the ‘cramper van’ were a Bedford Bambi van and a four-wheeled pedal cart that had seen service at a Butlins holiday camp.

The Tricycle House is pedal-powered recreational vehicle (RV) similar to the Cramper Van, but offers even more comfort because it boasts its own bath and shower.

Each piece of the tiny house is made from lightweight plastic that has been scored, folded and welded into shape. The polypropylene plastic bodywork can expand like an accordion to create more space, and connect to other houses. The translucent plastic allows the interior to be lit by the sun during the day or street lamps at night.

The sink, stove, and bathtub are collapsible and stow away at one end of the tiny home.

Bicycle caravans

It might not have a bath like the Tricycle House, but it’s the ideal accessory for cyclists who demand luxury on their camping trips. The QTvan is a fully-equipped, single-berth caravan designed to be towed by a bicycle and allows the bike to be used independently.

The QTvan boasts a full-sized single bed, 19” television, drinks cabinet and tea-making facilities. The Environmental Transport Association (ETA) commissioned the bicycle caravan to illustrate the efficiency of the bicycle. The caravan illustrates the versatility of the bicycle. Bikes don’t just beat traffic, get you fit, save you money and go easy on the environment, few people realise how much you can carry or tow with them.

Cycle insurance from the ETA includes new-for-old, third party insurance (in the case of an accident you may need to seek compensation or even deal with a claim by someone else), personal accident cover, race event cover and if you suffer a mechanical breakdown, they will come out and recover you and your bike. Electric bicycles can also be covered. Includes 90 days’ worldwide cover.