USA TODAY International Edition
TSA takes action to fix crisis
Fury grows along with airport lines, and Congress wants solution
MCLEAN, VA. Desperate to squelch sharp criticism for mismanaging airport checkpoints, the head of the Transportation Security Administration said the agency will post up- to- the- minute wait times by mid- June and will test an automated bin- moving system designed to get travelers through checkpoints faster.
TSA Administrator Peter Neffenger dismissed the agency’s top security officer Monday as the furor over long lines at airports grew in Congress, where the House Homeland Security committee will hold a hearing Wednesday to consider legislation to deal with the situation.
The real- time data will do little to alleviate the lines, but travelers can plan to arrive earlier or choose a faster checkpoint to enter terminals, Neffenger told USA TODAY. The automated bins won’t be available for months.
The volume of carry- on bags, which has quadrupled in recent years “is the No. 1 thing that slows down the checkpoint,” Neffenger said.
Delta Air Lines and the TSA are testing two automated checkpoint lanes at Atlanta HartsfieldJackson International Airport. The lanes, in place at London’s Heathrow airport, allow up to five people to load their bins at the same time.
The exceedingly long lines — up to three hours in some cases — at major airports across the country in recent months are likely to grow during the busy summer travel season.
In one instance May 15 at Chicago’s O’Hare airport, 450 travelers missed flights because of excessive waits at the security lines. Neffenger called the situation unacceptable but noted improvements after the agency shifted more officers and canine teams to the airport.
The TSA blames the long lines on a combination of more travelers, fewer officers and the need for tighter security after terrorist attacks in Brussels and Paris. The TSA screened 449 million travelers in the first five months of this year, 57 million more than during the same period in 2015 and with 5,800 fewer front- line officers than during the program’s peak in 2011, Neffenger said.
An inspector general’s report that faulted the agency for failing to detect weapons and other contraband prompted the TSA to direct its officers to more closely scrutinize bags, which also slowed the process, he said.
Neffenger said the agency removed Kelly Hoggan from his post as head of security Monday because the agency is seeking a “different approach,” not because of wrongdoing.
The agency, using its myTSA app, will post real- time checkpoint waits at the largest airports by mid- June, he said.