Deschutes County

Cascades East Transit (CET) is operated by the Central Oregon Intergovernmental Council serving Deschutes, Crook and Jefferson counties and the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs. CET provides service to more than 200,000 residents.

CET operates fixed routes in Bend, regional Community Connectors, Dial-A-Ride and recreation services. Since the pandemic, all of CET’s core services except for recreation routes have remained free to the public to ensure community members can access jobs, education, shopping and medical appointments.

CET provides more than 600,000 passenger trips annually, with roughly half of those trips on Bend fixed routes. Bend’s transit system contains nine routes that connect to downtown, the Old Mill District, Oregon State University Cascades, Central Oregon Community College, St. Charles and Mosaic medical facilities, and shopping destinations on the north and south ends of the city.

CET’s main transit facilities include Hawthorne Station in Bend and the Redmond Transit Hub. Thousands of customers utilize CET’s transit centers to access destinations within Central Oregon and throughout the state.

CET’s Regional Community Connector routes provide important transit connections between La Pine, Sunriver, Bend, Redmond, Sisters, Prineville, Madras, Culver, Metolius, Crooked River Ranch and Warm Springs. Redmond Proficiency Academy (RPA) students make up a large percentage of ridership on CET’s Community Connector routes during the school year. More than two-thirds of students ride CET’s buses using a group pass program. Without a regional bus service, students living in rural areas would not be able to attend the RPA.

CET’s recreation services, such as the Mt. Bachelor, Ride the River and Lava Butte shuttles, transport locals and visitors to scenic destinations within Bend, helping to reduce traffic congestion and CO2 emissions. For example, CET’s Ride the River shuttle provided more than 30,000 rides in July 2022.