How this Gold Coast workshop is transforming discarded bikes into life-changing wheelchairs


At 84, Des La Rance has turned an unlikely obsession into a lifeline for people in crisis: transforming dumped bicycles into tough, terrain-ready wheelchairs.
In a busy Gold Coast workshop, he and a team of 30 volunteers are giving new purpose to thousands of discarded bike frames — and new mobility to people who need it most.
“Nobody I know of is making wheelchairs from bicycles,” he said.
“There are other people making wheelchairs, but not the way we do ours.”

The Surfers Sunrise Wheelchair Trust’s latest shipment — more than 120 wheelchairs — is bound for Sri Lanka, where the destructive Cyclone Ditwah hit in late November and claimed 635 lives.

Valluvan Thillairajah is volunteering with Australian-based charity Vanni Hope to provide flood relief to people affected by the recent floods in Sri Lanka. Source: Supplied / Valluvan Thillairajah / Vanni Hope.

Valluvan Thillairajah is delivering flood relief in Sri Lanka with Australian-based charity Vanni Hope.

“People with limited mobility are literally unable to get away from it,” he said.
“A lot of [people with disabilities] are unfortunately caught in the destruction, and it is really tough for them.”

The Melbourne-based medical student said he is extremely grateful that a container of 121 wide-tyre wheelchairs is due to arrive any day, offering extra mobility to many of Sri Lanka’s most vulnerable.

Rocks and mud along a destroyed road in a mountain area.

Flooding in Sri Lanka has washed away many roads, making access difficult. Source: Supplied / Valluvan Thillairajah / Vanni Hope

Flooding in Sri Lanka has destroyed major roads and washed away paths, making transport challenging.

“These rough terrain wheelchairs are really useful for us,” Thillairajah said.
“In regions like the upcountry, it is very hilly with mud roads and few sealed pavements.
“Also, a lot of the roads were destroyed [by flooding], so these wheelchairs with wide wheels and a thicker wheel base have far more traction.”
The wheelchair project is the vision of retired cabinet maker Des La Rance, a Gold Coast local and long-term Rotarian.

“Oh, the reward when you hand a child a wheelchair, it just takes my breath away,” La Rance said.

A man in a cap and blue t-shirt stands next to a wheelchair on a bench.

Des La Rance has supervised wheelchair production for almost 30 years. Source: SBS / Matt Guest

La Rance’s idea to start the charity stemmed from a trip to Fiji in 1996.

“I could not believe what the children there were going through without wheelchairs,” he said.
“One [recipient] that really sticks in my mind was a 14-year-old girl who was walking around on her hands.
“We asked her what are you going to do now [with your new wheelchair]?

“And she said: ‘I am going to town. I’ve never been to town’.”

A young boy sitting in a wheelchair smiles for the camera.

Des La Rance said supporting a child with disability by giving them a wheelchair is a profoundly rewarding experience for him. Source: Supplied / Surfers Sunrise Rotary Club/Surfers Sunrise Wheelchair Trust

Almost 30 years later, La Rance still produces wheelchairs from dumped and unwanted bicycles.

“The bicycles come in, they get cut up and machined to what we want, and then they’re all passed down through the line for spray painting and finishing,” he said.

And there is no shortage of raw materials, with more than 300,000 bicycles discarded every year, most of which end up in landfill.

A labour of love

For Wheelchair Trust chairman Geoff Croad, collecting and repurposing unwanted bikes is nothing short of a labour of love.

A man in a blue t-shirt stands smiling at camera.

The Gold Coast-based trust has converted around 40,000 discarded bikes into wheelchairs. Source: SBS / Matt Guest

“There was one building in Surfers Paradise that had 40 to 50 bikes sitting in the basement,” Croad said.

“So, we were able to pick up 30 [bikes] and bring them back to the depot.
“We use the back frame of the bike, and we need two of those matching frames to form the basic wheelchair.”
Over the years, La Rance estimates the workshop in the Gold Coast suburb of Arundel has converted around 40,000 discarded bikes.
And its dedicated volunteers have transformed those into almost 12,000 wheelchairs so far.

“We have delivered them to 31 different countries in the world, across Asia and Africa and even to Ukraine,” he said. “And also through the Pacific, including Samoa and Fiji.”

A wheelchair sits on a riser in a workshop with others in the background.

The design has become so sought-after that Des La Rance said the charity is struggling to keep up with demand. Source: SBS / Matt Guest

The design has become so sought-after that La Rance said the charity is struggling to keep up with demand.

“We just keep the containers rolling out. We’ve got people all over the world wanting these wheelchairs, so we’re never going to fulfill the requests that are out there,” he said.
The project already produces 400 wheelchairs each year and hopes to double that to 800 next year — an achievement that fills La Rance with immense pride.

“I never imagined this at all,” he said.

A child with a big smile sits on a wheelchair with a bright blue seat.

The project produces 400 wheelchairs annually and hopes to double its capacity next year. Source: Supplied / Surfers Sunrise Rotary Club/Surfers Sunrise Wheelchair Trust

In countries with limited government support, many children with restricted mobility are excluded socially and from school — a situation this project helps to change.

“You just need to experience the effect [a new wheelchair] has on a person that never been able to walk,” La Rance said.
“If you give a child a wheelchair, friends or family can wheel them to wherever they want to go.
“And it brings families back together again, as well.”
This story was produced in collaboration with SBS German.



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