This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The University of Utah is moving ahead with plans to put an electric shuttle bus on campus.
A prototype of the shuttle will begin running from campus housing to the main campus in the fall, said Alma Allred, director of commuter services. It will charge at the South Campus TRAX station at 1790 E. South Campus Drive.
Meanwhile, officials are planning to extend the shuttle's route with a new road between the business school parking lot and student union parking lot. That project is expected to begin construction in late 2014.
The new road will connect two existing streets for a final route that traverses campus from the Warnock Engineering Building at 72 Central Campus Drive to the South Campus TRAX stop.
The electric shuttle project got initial funding from a $2.7 million federal grant awarded to the university and the Utah Transit Authority in 2011, and the road construction will be paid for by a smaller grant awarded earlier this year, Allred said.
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