The Kingsport Area Transit Service offers a Dial-A-Ride service for qualifying residents, providing curb-to-curb, next day transportation to any number of places around town, such as the store, to work or a doctor’s office.

The service is available to Kingsport seniors age 65 or older, residents with a permanent or temporary health-related condition, and qualifying residents with a job. One of Dial-A-Ride’s most loyal and consistent users is retired educator Katherine Redwine, who has used the service nearly every day for the past two years.

“I’m aging and I need to go to the Kingsport Aquatic Center. I’ve been going there literally since the first month it opened, starting out with water aerobics and then going off on my own,” Redwine said. “I have rheumatoid arthritis and other issues and I go there for exercise because it’s the best thing for me. I’ve learned a lot of good
movements there.”

Redwine has lived in the greater Kingsport community for most of her life and would not choose to live anywhere else.

After her health got worse and she had to give up her vehicle, Redwine transitioned to KATS’ Dial-A-Ride service to help her get around town and continuing going to the Kingsport Aquatic Center.

“Almost every day KATS runs, and the aquatic center is open, I’m there,” she said. “I’m so grateful to KATS and the aquatic center employees and the services they provide. It makes me proud to be here, to spend my last years in a healthy and independent way,” Redwine said.

To use KATS’s Dial-A-Ride ADA or Job Assist services, please visit www.kingsporttransit.org and fill out an application. To use Dial-A-Ride 65, simply be age 65 or older and call 423-224-2613 to begin.

Then, you can schedule a trip by calling 423-224-2613 between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Sunday through Friday. KATS encourages you to be prepared for your trip 30 minutes before your scheduled pick-up time. Once your trip is complete, simply call the number again to schedule a pick-up time.

The Dial-A-Ride service operates within Kingsport’s boundaries and all of the vehicles are wheelchair accessible.

“I would definitely recommend this service to anyone,” Redwine said. “This meets a real need for the citizens of Kingsport, especially the ones who have trouble getting around.”

For more information about KATS and the services it provides, please visit www.kingsporttransit.org.