Incoming freshman, prospective students and community members are invited to check out one of the state’s first hydrogen-powered shuttle buses and learn about plans for a temporary campus service this fall at the University of Missouri-Rolla.

The bus, one of two built by Ford Motor Co. for a shuttle service, will be on display from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 11, outside the Havener Center on campus. The hydrogen-powered buses are an integral part of the first rural test site for the federal government’s hydrogen technology program. The test site is a joint effort among the University of Missouri-Rolla, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Research and Innovative Technology Administration, National University Transportation Center, U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory and the Defense Logistics Agency.

The temporary shuttle bus service, to run on the UMR campus from August to January, will have six pickup locations, including the Havener Center, student housing and Parker Hall. The service is anticipated to begin on Monday, Aug. 20, the first day of classes at UMR.

Initially, the hydrogen will be supplied from a mobile hydrogen fueler built by Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. and installed at the HyPoint Industrial Park in Rolla. Plans for the state’s first permanent hydrogen fueling station are being finalized for the installation in St. Robert by 2008. After the fueling station is completed, the station will provide both the fuel for a commuter service for Fort Leonard Wood employees along Interstate 44 corridor and a test bed for demonstrating the safe generation, storage and dispensing of hydrogen.