Airport lines may not be getting shorter anytime soon. Recently, the Air Transport Association, a trade organization of leading U.S. airlines, began urging airports not to endorse the Registered Traveler program currently being tested by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).
The program, which is still in a pilot phase, enables frequent fliers to breeze through security lines with a quick flash of a card. The trade-off is that these passengers must pass a comprehensive background check and fork over fingerprints, iris biometrics, and cash.
According to the TSA, such personal information will enable the program to determine who poses a risk and who does not, enabling "positive" travelers to skip frustrating security lines. Pilot programs have already been completed at airports in Minneapolis-St. Paul, Los Angeles, Houston, Boston, and Washington, DC, leaving only one ongoing, in Orlando, which is scheduled to wrap up in mid-2006. The program currently operating in Orlando charges $79.95 a year for the service.
While the TSA boasts that "the pilots were a success," many fear that the program may tip the scale in the delicate balance between speed and security at airports. James May, president and CEO of ATA, cautions: "As currently designed, the program will unnecessarily drain limited TSA resources and detract from the agency's ability to craft more comprehensive programs benefiting all travelers."
The TSA recently postponed its plans to have 40 RT programs in operation this summer. But now it is unclear when, or if, airports will ever adopt the program. In the meantime, airports will continue to ponder new approaches to keeping travelers happy as they wait in line.
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