Kenaitze Indian Tribe unveils Kahtnu Area Transit

Published 10:30 pm Wednesday, December 3, 2025

On Tuesday, the Kenaitze Indian Tribe rolled out a fixed bus route geared toward serving the wider Kenai Peninsula community and filling gaps in public transportation in the central peninsula.

Kahtnu Area Transit now offers 13 stops between Nikiski and Sterling, providing easy access to the North Peninsula Recreation Center, the Soldotna Library, Central Peninsula Hospital and more. Four 37-foot-long buses, each with a maximum capacity of 56 riders —including 34 seated passengers — will run from 6:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday. Routes will start at the Kenai bus depot before heading north to Nikiski. After a stop in Kenai, buses will travel out to Big John’s in Sterling.

According to Brandi Bell, the Tribe’s transportation manager, Kahtnu Area Transit was established to fulfill transportation needs by working with existing transportation services. The Tribe has for years offered transportation to members of the Kenaitze Indian Tribe, offering on-demand, door-to-door services to un’ina — meaning “those we serve” in the Dena’ina language. According to the center’s website, over 2,100 Tribal members live on the Kenai Peninsula today, and means of transportation are limited for folks who can’t drive or don’t own a vehicle.

“Transportation services, or lack of, is one of the biggest barriers the Native community has in seeking medical services, jobs, community services and things like that,” Bell said. “In our long-range transportation plan, we identified the need for a fixed public bus route. An opportunity came up with the Federal Transit Administration for a project just like ours.”

The Federal Transit Administration Tribal Transit Program awarded the Kenaitze Indian Tribe a $1.1 million grant to launch a fixed-route bus service between Nikiski and Sterling in 2022. The Tribe received a second supplemental grant from the FTA in 2023, which will allow for further growth in the coming years.

According to a Nov. 20 press release from the U.S. Department of Transportation, the Kenaitze Indian Tribe was also recently awarded $654,272 in Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities Program funding to renovate its transportation facility, which will serve as the primary hub and service station for the Tribe’s fixed-route public transit system and vehicle fleet.

The Tribe has continuously evolved its public transportation offerings to meet the needs of both the borough community and members of the Kenaitze Indian Tribe. Before Kahtnu Area Transit, the Tribe mainly offered on demand rides to tribal members using shuttle buses. Bell said while that service primarily serves an older demographic, she expects a wider age range to utilize Kahtnu Area Transit.

“During a community survey, it was definitely young families without transportation and the elderly in our community,” Bell said.

Bell said Kahtnu is in the process of hiring enough drivers to support a second route connecting Kenai and Soldotna via Kalifornsky Beach Road, and a third offering long-distance travel between Nikiski and Sterling in early 2026. The company currently employs three drivers, but they need three more before they can open the new routes.

For now, riders can purchase bus passes at the transit center, which is located at 10288 Kenai Spur Highway. Single rides cost $5 and are cash only, but kids ages 5-17, veterans, seniors 55 and older and Medicare cardholders are eligible for half-price fares.

Monthly passes are available as well. In the future, the center will offer a card-reload system and online payments.

Learn more about Kahtnu Area Transit or view the entire bus schedule online at kahtnutransit.com/.