During its general assembly meeting on Wednesday, Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) passed $1,200 in funding for a charter bus to Portland International Jetport over Thanksgiving break. The free service is intended to provide Bowdoin students with reliable transportation to the airport.

BSG Vice President Elliott Ewell ’27 explained in an interview with the Orient that the charter bus is one component of BSG’s initiative to increase transportation access during breaks.

“Over the summer, [BSG President] Eisa [Rafat ’25] and I agreed that this was one of our three big goals for this year,” Ewell said. “I did a few calls, we talked to administrators and one of the two versions of this solution is chartering buses.”

Last week, BSG sent a survey to the student body to gather information on break transportation needs. Based on the responses, BSG determined that a charter bus at 1 p.m. on Friday, November 22 would accommodate the most students based on flight timing. Next week, BSG will discuss proposed funding for van rides to the Portland jetport.

Ewell said that BSG is uniquely positioned to fund this pilot service.

“We have the unique ability to do something so quickly. We don’t have to rely on administrators. We have the money, and seeing if students actually take advantage of this is important,” he said.

Additionally, BSG hopes the service can eventually expand to Boston and become a consistent part of BSG’s services.

“We want to make this a thing for, especially, Thanksgiving and spring break,” Ewell said. “This becomes difficult because BSG is a changeover organization, but we’re looking at ways to make it institutional.”