Students may not always excel in their studies, but when it comes to jugaad (creative problem-solving), they rarely fall short. A brilliant example of this is seen in the case of two Oxford University
students who, fed up with soaring rental costs, decided to purchase a dilapidated double-decker bus and convert it into a home. The transformation has left many astonished after seeing the impressive interior.
From Rent Stress To Bus Express
Faced with the ever-increasing cost of accommodation, 20-year-old Leo Bevan and Kit Renshaw, students at Oxford University, made a rather unconventional decision. They purchased an old double-decker bus, once used by British pop group Sugababes during their tour, via Facebook Marketplace and have since made it their residence.
Now, in their final year of studies, the pair was struggling with housing expenses that reached £9,000 to £10,000 per year (approximately Rs 10 lakh to Rs 11 lakh). Leo had already paid £7,500 for university accommodation in his first year, £6,500 in a shared house in his second, and was expected to pay £10,000 in his final year, an unmanageable amount. Kit’s rent history was similarly steep, with £4,500 per year for two years and a sudden jump to £9,000 in the third.
Buying A Bus To Cut Costs
In June 2024, Leo and Kit managed to purchase a 44-foot-long double-decker bus for just £5,000 (approximately Rs 5.9 lakh), completing the deal within 30 minutes on Facebook Marketplace. Since the bus was not in running condition, they had to pay £1,300 (Rs 1.5 lakh) to have it towed from Liverpool to Oxford.
They now park the vehicle in a designated lot and pay a weekly parking fee of £73 (Rs 8,690). By the end of the year, this alternative housing solution is projected to save them £2,500 to £3,500 (Rs 2.9 lakh to Rs 4 lakh).
From Wreck To Residence
Turning the bus into a liveable space was no small task. The interior was in a poor state, with dead rats, needles, and mould strewn throughout. The students began the renovation themselves: removing passenger and driver seats, tables, parts of the upper walls, and even part of the roof. They also stripped out the heating and cooling systems.
However, they chose to retain and refurbish some original features such as the leather seats, cupboards, TV, and sound system. They plan to use generators and batteries for electricity, and run their oven on LPG cylinders. At present, the bus lacks a bathroom, so the two have been showering at friends’ houses.
A Challenge And An Adventure
Leo and Kit admit that the project is full of challenges but say the experience is also proving to be exciting and rewarding. Leo shared, “I bought the bus using borrowed money, and we’re reusing as much as possible from the original setup. There’s still work to be done; laying the flooring, repairing the walls, fitting the kitchen and a toilet, but we’re confident we’ll get there.”
Their story has become a testament to student ingenuity, offering a creative workaround to Britain’s housing affordability crisis; and it all began with a broken-down bus and a big idea.
