SOUTH BEND – A late-night weekend bus route will begin running between downtown and the University of Notre Dame in a couple of weeks.

The university’s student government pushed for the new Transpo route to provide a safe, efficient way for students to travel between campus, downtown and the northeast neighborhood, student body president Grant Schmidt said.

"A lot of people try to walk home (from downtown), which is not always a safe decision," Schmidt said.

Notre Dame agreed last week to pay Transpo around $25,000 to operate the route this year, said Brian Coughlin, the university’s assistant vice president for student affairs.

Both parties will have the option of renewing the service next year, said Maurice Pearl, director of operations at Transpo.

Route 7A, also known as the Midnight Express, will debut Dec. 4 and run from 9:40 p.m. to 3:20 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays during the fall and spring semesters, Pearl said. The route is a supplement to Transpo’s Route 7, which runs between downtown and University Park Mall.

The Express will run from Transpo’s South Street Station through downtown, the northeast neighborhood and Eddy Street Commons, and along the eastern edge of campus on Edison Road and Twyckenham Drive before arriving at Library Circle.

A one-way trip will take about 18 minutes, Coughlin said.

The route was established primarily for college students, but anyone can use it.

Buses will serve popular bars such as Corby’s Irish Pub and The Linebacker Inn as well as downtown restaurants and areas near campus where a lot of students live, Schmidt said.

The route might also decrease disturbances students create when walking in neighborhoods late at night or early in the morning, he said.

"Whether people have been drinking or not, you can hear the conversations on the street," he said.

Transpo already has contracts with Notre Dame, Holy Cross College and Saint Mary’s College that allow students and employees to ride buses for free.