U-turn: After return to regular schedule, CET again trims Bend fixed-route frequency

Due to driver shortages; Route 10 will be suspended; transit agency apologizes for inconvenience

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Less than two weeks after returning to its regular weekday schedule, Cascades East Transit announced Tuesday it will again operate Bend fixed-route weekday services on a reduced-frequency “Saturday schedule” starting on Monday, Sept. 20, and until further notice, due to continued driver shortages.

"Despite a robust driver recruitment effort this summer, MTM-Transit, CET’s Bend services contractor, was not able to recruit and retain enough drivers to operate regular schedules in Bend during the weekdays," the announcement said

Saturday schedule information for Bend routes can be accessed at www.cascadeseasttransit.com/Bend.

Bend and rural Dial-A-Ride services and regional Community Connectors will continue to operate on regular schedules and service hours. A Dial-A-Ride vehicle and driver will be available at Hawthorne Station (334 NE Hawthorne Avenue) on weekdays between 5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. to provide free rides to customers arriving by Community Connectors who need to reach their final destinations within Bend city limits.

All CET services are currently free to the public, officials said, and face coverings are required inside buses and at transit facilities.

Route 10 in Bend does not operate on a Saturday schedule and will be suspended starting Sept. 20, until further notice. Route 11 serves a similar geography and can be utilized by passengers to access destinations in southwest Bend. The following Route 10 stops will be temporarily closed starting Sept. 20, until further notice:

• SW Simpson at SW Columbia
• SW Simpson at Century Drive
• SW Colorado at SW Columbia
• SW Colorado at SW Simpson

Transitioning Bend’s weekday fixed-route services to Saturday schedules allows CET to maintain geographic route coverage while reducing the amount of bus drivers needed per day to operate services. MTM-Transit bus driver positions and application materials are posted at www.mtm-inc.net/careers.

CET apologized for any inconveniences to transit riders during this transition. Please visit www.cascadeseasttransit.com or call CET’s call center at 541-385-8680 for service information and updates.