In Eastern Oregon, the small town of Pendleton is connected to the bustling city of Portland through a unique transportation solution: an eight-seat plane that makes the journey in just 55 minutes. This flight is part of the federal Essential Air Service (EAS) program, designed to subsidize air travel in smaller communities after deregulation transformed the transportation landscape.
However, as the costs of the EAS program soar past $500 million annually, Congress is actively debating the future of this financial support, especially as it faced a hiatus during the recent partial government shutdown.
To grasp how Pendleton secured such accessible flights, we must look back over the last century.
In the early 20th century, federal regulation tightly controlled transportation across the nation, ensuring that even remote areas had access to trains, buses, and flights. This created a system where larger markets subsidized the travel costs for smaller communities, a practice known as cross-subsidization.
Fred Fravel, a principal at KFH Group who specializes in transportation planning, observed the shifts in the late 1970s and early 1980s when Congress deregulated transportation sectors such as rail, trucking, and airlines.
As a result, many service providers eliminated their less profitable rural routes, leaving these communities with limited options. The federal government then had to step in with subsidies for various forms of transportation: Amtrak for rail travel, EAS for flights, and grant programs for rural bus services.
This brings us to the contemporary situation in Pendleton, illustrated by a local resident named Ken “Buck” Buckley. Recently stranded in Eastern Oregon with a broken truck and 2,400 pounds of deer antlers, Buckley sought a tow truck to help him. When the driver saw the antlers, he offered to transport them to market for an additional $500.
After successfully selling his cargo, Buckley needed a new truck, located one in Portland, and intended to take the bus to fetch it.
However, upon arrival at the La Grande Bus Station, he discovered that Greyhound no longer operated in the region, with its service canceled eight months prior.
Left with few alternatives, he took the local Kayak bus, traveling 90 miles to Pendleton, where he could board a Boutique Air flight scheduled to Portland.
Boutique Air operates three round trips each day between Pendleton and Portland, marking it as the sole essential air service in the Pacific Northwest. Dan Bandel, the manager at the Eastern Oregon Regional Airport, highlights the importance of EAS funding, which provides essential services for remote communities.
This connectivity is vital, especially as many rural healthcare facilities are closing, driving residents to seek medical services that may require longer travel times. The cost of a one-way flight from Pendleton to Portland is about $59, largely thanks to federal subsidies that cover nearly 80% of the fare.
According to Bandel, “If it was $250 a person, then it wouldn’t be cost effective. But [it’s] less than half of that for a family of four to fly.”
On these small flights, check-in processes are considerably simpler: passengers are weighed before boarding, pilots assist with luggage, and there is no Transportation Security Administration checkpoint, leading to a more personal aviation experience.
In stark contrast, the loss of Greyhound service has resulted in much longer bus journeys in the region—up to nine and a half hours of travel with multiple transfers—for a price comparable to the flight.
Experts argue that there is a significant opportunity for improving rural transportation. Joseph Schwieterman, a transportation professor at DePaul University, suggests that well-subsidized intercity buses could rival some EAS flights in terms of cost-efficiency and even environmental impact.
He notes, “There really is a mismatch … Sadly, we’re seeing now places that have essential air service that have no bus service and that’s a really dysfunctional situation.”
Schwieterman warns that without further investment, rural bus services will continue to disappear, compounding the challenges faced by small transit agencies that are already struggling to survive.
As the debate around EAS funding continues, Schwieterman emphasizes the potential of bus subsidies to reach more passengers at a lower cost per mile. “We feel that a bus is just a bargain,” he concludes, highlighting its affordability compared to air travel.
Currently, the most efficient way for Pendleton residents to travel remains the subsidized flight service—a lifeline maintained through federal funding. Yet, as transit advocates argue, there is potential for federal funds to be used to revitalize bus services, creating networks that connect multiple towns rather than relying on a singular airport.
Oregon is already exploring this strategy, planning to launch a subsidized bus service to replace the defunct Greyhound routes using a combination of state and federal funds. The Oregon Department of Transportation has expressed its intentions to initiate operations by the end of the year, depending on the availability of federal funding.
The hope is that, unlike air travel, these bus routes will eventually become self-sustaining, offering a reliable transportation alternative for residents in this region and potentially revitalizing access when air service is restricted.
image source from：opb
