A deal reached earlier this week by student leaders and university officials will expand weekend shuttle service to Dupont Circle beginning next week, answering a desire for more weekend buses repeatedly voiced by students.

Under the terms of the deal, the GUTS service to Dupont on Saturdays – currently limited to one bus per hour for five hours starting at 12:30 p.m. – will continue, supplemented by shuttle services every half hour from 6 p.m. until midnight. Both routes will be managed by Abe’s Transportation, a company that provides shuttles for GUTS buses and SafeRides shuttles.

In addition, a new Sunday service will begin at noon and continue until 4 p.m., running every half hour. There is currently no Sunday GUTS service.

Funding for the expanded service, which is set to begin on Nov. 11, came from the Student Activities Commission’s Alumni Gift Fund, a pool of alumni donations not assigned to any particular university project.

GUSA took part in negotiations with administrators and Abe’s Transportation. Student Association president Twister urchison (SFS ’08) said that GUSA first looked into expanding GUTS service, but the proposal was rejected by Karen Frank, vice president for facilities and student housing.

Eden Schiffmann (COL ’08), GUSA’s chief of staff, said that the project will cost approximately $20,000 this year, with between $14,000-15,000 of the expenditure paying for the service itself. The remainder will be put towards marketing the new shuttles, Schiffmann said.

Vice President for University Safety Dave Morrell praised the new deal, saying that expanded service to Dupont Circle will provide students with a safer alternative to traveling back to campus on weekends.

“Every time we can get students in transportation and off the streets, it’s a much safer situation,” he said.

Murchison said that the shuttles are important because they will allow students to travel to different neighborhoods in Washington, D.C., at no cost during the weekends.

“This is a good measure for getting students off campus and to help diminish the feeling of being isolated on campus on the weekends,” he said.

SAC Chair Lorraine Riley (COL ’08) agreed. “It’s a great way to let the Hoyas experience the greater D.C. area,” Riley said, adding that the service will allow student organizations to more easily attend events off campus.

GUSA Safety Secretary Andrew Kim (SFS ’09) agreed that the expanded shuttles will provide an important service to students.

“People travel on the weekends and . there’s no convenient option before the integration of this new system to get into D.C.,” Kim said.

In order to help jumpstart the new program, SAC will be encouraging groups to hold activities off campus and to use the new shuttles, Director of Student Programs Martha Swanson said.

“It’s critical that GUSA market it,” she said.

The advertising responsibilities will be shared by both SAC and GUSA, who will be tabling in Red Square over the next two weeks.

“It’s crucial that [students] use the service to get off campus on the weekends or else it will be a missed opportunity,” Murchison said.