A pilot program of Safe Ride will begin Thursday after being postponed last week.

Safe Ride is a student driving service that provides users with rides home from downtown Austin. According to an email sent out to students Wednesday, the program will service West Campus and East Riverside areas and run from 11:59 p.m.-3 a.m. Thursday through Saturday for the fall semester. The program will drop off students directly at their homes, apartments and dorms. 

Student Government President Kori Rady set the initiative in his campaign platform. Rady said he planned for Safe Ride to begin during the first class week of the 2014 school year, but because of issues with the insurance contract for uRide — the driving company partnering with UT to create Safe Ride — it was postponed.

“We’re really excited to bring this program to UT,” Rady said. “It has been a long time coming. A lot of our peer institutions have programs similar to this. It’s something that I think we really do need, and a lot of students have expressed to me previously that it’s needed. The University and Parking and Transportation Services are bringing this to the University and our students.”

According to Rady, Safe Ride is sponsored by the Office of the President and SG, making the service free to students. Students can sign up for Safe Ride on the University’s Parking and Transportation Services website.