The University of Hawai'i-Manoa Rainbow Shuttle extended its service to Waikiki, Ala Moana, Ward Warehouse and Restaurant Row yesterday on a one-month trial designed, in part, to help deal with the shortage of parking on campus.

The new shuttle route was created primarily to provide campus residents with transportation to popular areas, thereby minimizing the need for them to bring cars to campus. The measure was one of several that the university planned to implement to help unclog neighborhood streets surrounding the university.

For a free six-week trial period five afternoons and evenings a week — Thursday though Monday — the shuttle will leave student housing and make its way down Kapahulu Avenue, through the Waikiki area, to Ala Moana Center and Ward and then to Restaurant Row. The route will then be reversed, with the shuttle working its way back to the Manoa campus. The entire circuit will take about two hours, with shuttles scheduled to leave UH at 4, 6, 8 and 10 p.m., with the last arriving back on campus at midnight.

During the trial, officials will assess demand. The shuttle will be free for the first month — Aug. 24 to Sept. 30 — to anyone with a valid UH identification card. If the trial period proves successful, students will be asked to buy a $20 shuttle pass for the remainder of the semester. Anyone who already has a $100-a-semester U-pass for the city bus will be allowed to use the shuttle for free.

Associated Students of UH-Manoa Sen. Mike Theune was credited with the idea for the service. He worked with the UH parking office to help develop a shuttle route and schedule he felt would benefit students and help alleviate the parking situation at the university, officials said.