It’s Cascades East Transit’s ‘Try Transit Week’: Free rides and prizes, start of extended weekday hours

(Update: Adding video, comments from CET Director)

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- You can join Cascades East Transit for free bus rides during Try Transit Week, a community-wide celebration of public transportation throughout Central Oregon this week.

Enjoy free bus rides on all CET routes, extended service hours for Bend routes, and a week of transit-themed events and prize giveaways. Whether you’re a daily rider or new to CET, now is the perfect time to hop on board a CET bus to save money and help the environment.  

"We're really just trying to get the word out. Have a few different fun activities to encourage ridership. And at the same time, it lines up with the expansion hours, which is the most critical element of getting back to a commuter-based system," said director Bob Townsend.

Starting Monday, Bend Fixed Route service hours are extended during the mornings and evenings Monday-Friday to provide greater flexibility for commuters and riders who depend on transit. The new hours will start at 6:00am, with the last departure at 7:00pm at Hawthorne Station. 

"Most transit agencies within a year went back to their pre-COVID times. But here we are, five years later. And you know, it's long overdue," he added.

As the weather warms up, CET says some routes will see an increase in riders,

"Our hopes are that over time we start to increase summer usage because tourists who come in, it's easy to ride the bus. They can just get an app on their phone and use our service."

CET will be moving from free rides beginning this fall. Rides will be two dollars each, but riders who qualify can have their fares reduced to one dollar.

Here's the rest of CET's recent announcement:

Explore new opportunities to ride the bus in Bend and beyond by joining the Try Transit Challenge June 2-8. Sign up on Get There Oregon and log at least one round trip on a CET bus for a chance to win a $100 grocery store gift card and other great prizes! Be sure to stop by a CET event for trip planning assistance, schedule information, snacks, and prize giveaways.  

Try Transit Week activities include: 

• “Perk and Ride” coffee kiosk and breakfast snacks at Hawthorne Station (334 NE Hawthorne Ave.) in Bend from 7:30am-9am for early morning bus commuters. 

• Themed events at Hawthorne Station, Downtown Bend Library, OSU-Cascades, Central Oregon Community College, and the Redmond Transit Hub that include bike loading demos, trivia, snacks, and prizes. 

• Celebrate with CET on Thursday, June 5 from 4-7 pm at Hawthorne Station for our main event that includes transit trivia, prize giveaways, tours of new Hawthorne Station amenities, snacks, and popsicles! 

A full list of Try Transit Week events is available at cascadeseasttransit.com/trytransit/. Follow us on Instagram @cascadeseasttransit, tag your ride with #TryTransit, and join the fun! 

Links and resources:  

Sign up for a free Get There Oregon account to log your trips at https://getthere.rideamigos.com/s/commute-options 

Visit CET’s Try Transit webpage for a list of events https://cascadeseasttransit.com/trytransit/