Airport security lines: detour ahead

Registered traveler programs, which speed preapproved fliers through checkpoints, are set to expand to 20 US airports in '08.

By Alexandra Marks | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor

from the July 10, 2007 edition

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New York - The E-Z Pass of the air could be coming soon to an airport near you.

The registered traveler program, conceived after 9/11 as a way to speed frequent fliers through airports' long and unpredictable security lines, is finally gaining national momentum.

Though it isn't expected to be operational in enough airports to ease those jam-packed security lines for this peak flying season, it should help by next summer, when as many as 20 major airports are expected to have special security lanes for registered travelers.

With planes packed to record capacity and security concerns heightened after the foiled terrorist attacks in Britain, the expansion of the registered traveler (RT) program at least may give passengers something to look forward to as they pad barefoot through metal detectors this summer.

Some analysts say the RT program could spur a series of new conveniences at airports, such as special RT parking lots and waiting rooms. Eventually, RT cards could be used to ease screening logjams at places like sports stadiums and large concerts, they say.

But many see another benefit to RT: It could help struggling airlines improve their bottom lines by cutting the hassle factor enough to entice more people back to the air.

"The most profound aspect of this could be its impact on airlines' revenues, profits, and share prices," says Kevin Mitchell, chairman of the Business Travel Coalition in Radnor, Pa. "That's because the last six passengers generally make a difference between profit and loss on a given flight and, since 9/11, there's been a falloff in business travel that's never rebounded."

Only six airports currently have RT programs that provide a special security lane for people willing to pay a one-time fee of $100, go through a background check, and a biometric iris scan. That number could triple by next summer, with busy airports in cities such as Atlanta, Washington, and Newark, N.J., adding the program.

The goal is to make air travel easier for everyone who hops a flight, not just for the wing-tipped briefcase crowd. The idea is the same as for E-Z Pass: There's less traffic congestion for everyone when passholders can speed through the toll booths.

"Our customers spend between 30 seconds and four minutes going through security – sometimes it's five or six minutes on a very busy Monday morning," says Steve Brill, founder of CLEAR, a private company that operates the first and largest of the RT programs. "For everybody else, it's five minutes to an hour. The issue is predictability."

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