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Security line by redjar |
Turns out it wasn’t them—it was you and your impatience, Mr. Pro Traveler. According to Transportation Safety Administration estimates, allowing passengers to self-select into security lines for families, casual flyers and veterans has meant a 30-percent reduction in wait time, according to TSA spokesman Christopher White. The surprise? Even the families who were holding everyone up have gotten faster.
The reason for the speed-up is that TSA officers are finding fewer prohibited items when scanning family-lane bags, White told us. “We think that’s happening because families aren’t rushed to get to the metal detector, so they have time to take stuff out before getting there,” he said. “They’re not being pressured by the frequent traveler. For years we heard about this pressure at the checkpoint and we thought it was our officers. Focus groups showed us it was other passengers—that business traveler standing there, tapping his foot.”
The program—dubbed “black diamond” in many places, a reference to the signs denoting runs for advanced skiiers—has rolled out faster than expected, White added. When the process rolled out in two test locations in February, TSA officials thought it would be in 20 airports by summer’s end. However, it’s already been adopted by 21, including Los Angeles International, Seattle-Tacoma, Boston’s Logan, New York’s Kennedy, and Salt Lake City International.
Want to move a bit faster yourself? Try these tips:
- Pack your bags in organized, distinct layers. That allows for easier visual screening and makes your luggage less likely to require a personal search.
- Don’t wrap gifts until you have arrived at your destination. Wrapping, which could be used to conceal a prohibited item, will most likely be removed by TSA inspectors anyway.
- Remember the “3-1-1″ rule: Pack liquid in three-ounce containers or smaller, put them in one quart-size clear bag, and allow only one bag per passenger. Additional liquids and bags will be discarded.
- Remove your pet from his or her carrying case upon approaching the screening lane. All passengers with pets should carry their pet through the metal detector and send the carrier through the x-ray machine.
See the TSA website for additional pointers. — Alyssa Vorhies