TSA's Precheck Registration Program Causing Longer Security Lines (usatoday.com)

McGruber writes: The Associated Press is reporting that TSA's PreCheck program is causing maddening long security lines at U.S. airports. TSA's PreCheck security lanes can screen 300 passengers an hour, twice that of its standard security lanes. Based on that and other increased efficiencies, the TSA's front-line screeners were cut from 47,147 three years ago to 42,525 currently. At the same time, the number of annual fliers passing through checkpoints has grown from 643 million to more than 700 million. The TSA told Congress its goal was to have 25 million fliers enrolled in the PreCheck registration program, but as of March 1, only 9.3 million people had registered for PreCheck. TSA first tried to make up for that shortfall by randomly placing passengers into the express Precheck lanes, but scaled back that effort for fear dangerous passengers were being let through. That's when the regular security lines started growing -- up to 90 minutes in some cases. The TSA is now shifting some resources to tackle lines at the nation's biggest airports, but it claims there is no easy solution to the problem with a record number of fliers expected this summer. To enroll in TSA's Precheck registration program, travelers must pay $85 to $100 every five years, then submit to a background check, in-person interview at an airport, and to being fingerprinted. Unsurprisingly, getting once-a-year fliers to spend the time or the money to register has been a challenge. While 250,000 to 300,000 people are registering for Precheck every month, it will take more than four years at that pace to reach the TSA's target enrollment.

Comments

T.his S.ucks A.lot

[turkeydance]

..."there is no easy solution to the problem"... oh yes, there is.

Re:T.his S.ucks A.lot

[glitch!]

I know the answer is obvious, but since you did not actually say it... Disband the TSA. Fire their sorry and stupid asses so they can contribute to the economy in some other way. Go back to metal detectors and a simple xray as in the 1990's. Let passengers put their keys, coins, small knives, and Leatherman tools in the plastic basket going around the metal detector. Okay, have a vapor detector for common explosives and do a polite check when it gives a (false, of course) positive. Otherwise, non-metalics go through.

When I flew for business, my boss often gave me his tickets, and I just had to remember to respond when his name was called. The airlines hated this and they were a major force for the stupid regulations for checking ID. They were really pissed that senior citizens that bought cheap tickets way in advance could sell their tickets to business people who wanted close dates.

As far as I can remember, there are only a couple cases of actual airline "terrorist" actions in the last few decades that were not state sponsored. I think the Lockerbie bomb is one example. Most every other is a product of the CIA, Mossad, or one of their operatives. TSA can't do a thing about a privileged agent walking the "underwear bomber" or his equivalent around security.

Re:T.his S.ucks A.lot

[dbIII]

were not state sponsored. I think the Lockerbie bomb is one example

That was a "revenge" attack paid for by Iran with the contract carried out by a person from Libya (with what appeared to be full approval of the Libyan leader) so most definitely state sponsored.

Re: T.his S.ucks A.lot

[TheReaperD]

I think 90% is giving them too much credit. So far the only policy I have read that has likely had a positive change for security is putting security doors for the pilots and requiring them to be locked. But, that doesn't cost billions of dollars annually so it is not considered "sufficient."

Re:T.his S.ucks A.lot

[UnknownSoldier]

/Oblg. "Airport Logic"

9 oz = dangerous
Three 3 oz = perfectly safe
http://gentlemint-media.s3.ama...

Total Stupid Agents

Re:T.his S.ucks A.lot

[Jason Levine]

I had the several cans of soda I tried to carry on in 2010 confiscated and thrown out, along with my unopened sunscreen that was apparently 2 whopping ounces over the limit. Which was rather annoying, as sunscreen is like $10 and the plane didn't carry Dr. Pepper...

And, of course, they threw it all out in a big bin right by the security line. All those "potentially explosive" liquids just dumped in one area. Either the reasoning for dumping this stuff is disingenuous or they're just stupid. Or both. My money's on both.

Re:T.his S.ucks A.lot

[tacroy]

No, I do work with Airlines everyday. The airlines HATE TSA. HATE them. They lower customer experience and survey scores and make customers angry at the airlines despite the airlines and the airport having ZERO control over TSA.

Interviews

[darkain]

Just a small correction: the interviews don't have to happen at the airport. I was able to go through the interview process about a half our away from the airport, about 5 minutes away from my house. The interview process was painless. The entire thing is handled online, and then in person you just say "yes"/"confirm" to all the information on the form, that's it. The fingerprints are also taken electronically, so nothing messy there. They do the whole hand at once. I was in and out of the place in maybe 10 minutes? I can understand why infrequent travelers wouldn't want to pay the fee, but if you travel regularly it is more than worth it! (especially in airports with super wonky security, like San Diego where you have to leave and re-enter security to switch between gates sometimes)

Re:Interviews

[Mitreya]

It's willful, deliberate incompetence to implement a program

It's almost like there are no performance metrics or expectations to meet!
Like no one cares if the program is implemented well.

Undercover teams smuggled banned items in 67 out of 70 cases during an internal test. It is a unique operation indeed. Where else is less-than-5% success rate is a perfectly acceptable performance?

America is the Worst

[SumDog]

Airport security does suck everywhere. Australia's is pretty bad. Germany's is pretty terrible too, but the worst, by far, out of any country I have every flow through, is Americas. I have never had more confrontations with security than in the US. Most other countries don't require ID for flying domestically (and fun fact: America doesn't either. Next time, refuse. It takes a little longer, but it's worth it. The US government has no right to restrict transit if you don't have papers. In most EU countries you are required to have ID on you at all time. Not in the US).

Airport security is a joke. It's not security, it's security theatre. They've never stopped a single damn person intending harm ever in the history of their existence. Fuck them, fuck airports and fuck the TSA.

Not to mention, the TSA searches are totally and completely illegal and unconstitutional. Back when airport security was private, it was the airlines getting together to set the standards and searches were part of their terms of service. When the federal government starts doing it, it now becomes a 4th amendment violation. Texas tried to return airports to private security and was bullied by the federal government and gave up the fight. The new mm-wave body scanners have a massive false positive rate and are effectively useless.

Re:America is the Worst

[Bob the Super Hamste]

Hell most of the modern airport security actually makes things less secure. If one wanted to just bomb the security line, you don't even need to buy a ticket. Just fill one of those roller bar suitcases that everyone knows is too big to fit in the overhead compartment but never says anything and then detonate that when you are in the middle of the line. For extra punch you could have a suicide vest on and backpack filled with explosives too. Another way would be to drop some drink containers filled with liquid explosives in that drink trash can that is right next to the security line and have that go off later. Given their inability to find bad stuff just leave it in your pockets and send it through the x-ray machine but be sure to not pack an old film SLR camera with metal body and extra lenses as that will get you selected for extra screening every time. One could also just walk into an airport with a modern rifle and just do a pray and spray on the security line, I chose a rifle for this example because they over penetrate so one shot would go though multiple people and they have a larger capacity than most shotguns.

Those are just things I though up without any effort and anyone who has 2 brain cells to rub together could also think up. The fact that none of these has happened would indicate that there really aren't any real terrorists in the US, or that if there are they are so dumb I'm surprised they don't choke on their own tongue which may be the case given the few terrorists that various agencies do catch.

Misleading

[Anonymous Coward]

This is a misleading report. Attributing long lines to TSA pre-check is false; attributing long lines to mismanagement would be more accurate. Problem with TSA precheck enrollment? Drop the price. Recently; in 75% of the airports I've traveled - the TSA Precheck line was closed. This article is completely bogus; and everyone should do their own due diligence than blindly believing these reports and redistributing these articles. Please - due your own diligence; mainstream media has a long track record of misleading people.

Re:Misleading

[Macman408]

Attributing long lines to TSA pre-check is false; attributing long lines to mismanagement would be more accurate.

Yes, this times 1000. And, FWIW, the article isn't slanted this way, only the summary is. The article is much more straightforward, although they don't explicitly call out mismanagement.

Honestly, I think we'd be better off just getting used to the fact that sometimes bad people will get on planes, and security doesn't need to keep the casualty rate to zero; just discouraging most of the bad guys is good enough. We don't require that cars protect you from every possible way you could die in an accident - we just require them to be pretty good at protecting you most of the time. That's what I'd rather have the TSA's replacement tasked with.

Forget PreCheck if you fly international

[rworne]

If you travel overseas, go for Global Entry. It costs the same ($100), and it includes PreCheck as a perk. As an added bonus, you get to use kiosks for passport control (never a wait) and the crew line for customs.

I routinely take 8-10 minutes total from deplaning at LAX (Bradley Terminal) to the terminal exit. A bit longer if I have to wait for checked luggage. Worth every cent.

It's the body scanners

[Bamfarooni]

I fly a lot, and routinely notice that the body scanners take about 5x as long as the metal detectors (and probably cause cancer). I regularly watch the TSA agents clear their backed-up lines by opening the metal detector for 30 seconds, sending 10 people through, and then closing it again (making the value of the scanner clearly questionable).

Re:Numbers

[Time_Ngler]

They've dissuaded *countless* terrorists. Countless, as in, we can't count them because we made them up and you have no proof they don't exist

Taking off shoes

[Atmchicago]

No, their policy of making people take off their shoes is causing long lines.

for $85 you can be treated like a pre 9-11 citizen

[liquid_schwartz]

Although I travel often I am against the pre-check because it seems like a scam to have to pay $85 to be treated like a citizen again.

The head of the TSA are *ALL* former military

[elcor]

This is very wrong on so many levels. I met a former TSA and she explained how working there is hell made by those at the helm. They are all former Military with military training and mentality, enforcing military discipline onto the TSA workers and onto us, the citizen. She also mentioned that TSA workers send a lot of feedback to their superior but are met with either disciplinary measure or contempt.

Global Entry and TSA PreCheck = Soft-Corruption

[JakFrost]

These systems that require payment for favorable treatment and faster pass-through security checkpoints are akin to soft-corruption since they cost money to attain such elevated status. Their value is questionable and the procedure and process to pass-through is a bureaucratic joke without elevating security in any way. My in-person interview was getting a glace by a TSA employee and being asked my name. (Speaking as a Global Entry and TSA PreCheck holder.)

Re:Global Entry and TSA PreCheck = Soft-Corruption

[Cutriss]

That's an interesting data point. My interview(s!) were actually much more detailed and involved. I think I spent about 20 minutes with the agent in Canada, not to mention around 40 minutes combined with both US and Canadian border personnel doing a more cursory interview and an explanation about how the system worked from a functional standpoint (IE - How to use Nexus when I cross in a boat, with multiple travelers, etc). The main interview in Canada was largely focused on making sure I wasn't violating business visa limitations but I'm sure a 10+ minute interview is probably enough to also identify the presence of someone being disingenuous about the purpose of the program enrollment.

Might be the difference between strictly Global Entry and NEXUS (which includes Global Entry by default).

Somewhere in Hell...

[hyades1]

...Osama is laughing his ass off.

TSA = amateur hour^h^h^h^hdecade

[xeno]

I fly a lot. Not as much as the tech sales guys I work with, but enough to get Alaska's MVP75K top-level status in just the last half of last year. A few years back I had top-tier status on United and Alaska in the same year. So I have one of those nice little cards that lets me go thru the "premier/first class" lines at every airport. AND STILL the process sucks, and remains a constant source of despair for the state of business, security, and the country.

To wit:
1. Orwellian PRE bureaucracy: I cannot get a PRE approval, because my state ID (DL) doesn't list my middle initial, while my passport does. I would have to produce a certified copy of my birth certificate to correct the state ID, and my original birth certificate has a one-letter misspelling of one of my parents' names. It is a clusterfuck. And why the hell should I have to pay a private company for what amounts to a national ID card anyway?

2. The nakey microwave: The goddamn "millimeter wave" (high frequency microwave) xray machines are STILL NOT TESTED OR CERTIFIED as medically safe for xray exposure, only that they're safe from a heat damage perspective. It would be a federal crime to use one in a hospital, because there have been "no human tests or studies to prove scanner safety." And yet the TSA video playing at top volume above the line makes baseless claims that it's perfectly safe...

3. False positives: Even when I resign myself to go through the untested scanner, for me it gives a false positive about 75% of the time. Apparently I have oddly shaped legs. So I have to wait or step to the aide and get a patdown, which often takes as long as the opt-out groping (without the RF exposure).

4. The intentional delays: When I opt-out, the procedure is to let me stand there for at at least 5 minutes before calling a screener to come grope me. Not joking about this -- I had about 60 TSA pat-downs last year all across the US, and often the gate agent would just call "MALE ASSIST" off into the void to no one (literally calling out to an empty area). A few minutes later, they would say it again to the agent on the other side of the microwave box, and then someone would come up and walk me back. It was consistent enough to wonder if there's a policy to make sure that opt-out takes long enough to discourage others.

5. Nonexistent training for TSA: The opt-out manual screening procedure is passed on through oral tradition. I'm supposed to be read a statement about the procedure, asked if I want a screening in private, asked if I have medical devices (I do, so it matters), or if I have any sensitive or painful areas. Only 1 in 4 TSA agents remember to ask all of these, and I've frequently had to remind agents of what they're supposed to ask me. On 4 different occasions in the last quarter, I've had a newly hired TSA agaent being instructed on how to do the procedure by a slightly less inexperienced agent -- with no written instructions, no consistency to the procedure, and the instructor omitted one of the key points EVERY TIME. It's clown school.

6. Total failure to detect: They have no idea what to look for -- through some unintentional testing. I found an unsubtle pocketknife (a kershaw switchblade my teenager had bought) stuck between the frame and outer covering of one of the rolly bags I use -- after I'd used it half a dozen times as a carry-on, and TSA had missed it EVERY time. I can carry on a bag full of a dozen lithium-ion battery packs, and they don't even blink. A ziplock baggie full of random powder? No problem, as long as it's not a liquid or gel... But god forbid my girlfriend use a Lush product with too much glycerine in the lotion, and they're calling the explosives expert.

I could go on. A lot. But there's no point; there's already way way too much money invested into this security theater, enough that it has become its own ecosystem. Stopping now would mean publicly acknowledging the total lack of success or value. Not gonna happen... And

fingerprints

[markdavis]

>"To enroll in TSA's Precheck registration program, travelers must pay $85 to $100 every five years, then submit to a background check, in-person interview at an airport, and to being fingerprinted. "

Yeah, because I am really going to submit to being FINGERPRINTED so I can be searched without probable cause EVERY single time they run anybody's prints for ANY reason from ANY agency. I think not. Totally unacceptable.

Fingerprints should not be used for biometrics. Period. Once you give this data to the government (or big business), it will NEVER be erased or restricted, regardless of claims or laws- it will go into huge databases and shared between all agencies and used however they want for as long as they want.

If they really need a biometric for this "feature" of security, there is only one safer and practical biometric I know of- that is deep vein palm scan. That registration data cannot be readily abused. It can't be latently collected like DNA, fingerprints, and face recognition can. You have to know you are registering/enrolling when it happens. You don't leave evidence of it all over the place. When you go to use it, you know you are using it every time. And on top of all that, it is accurate, fast, reliable, unchanging, live-sensing, and cheap. If you must participate in a biometric, this is the one you should insist on using.

Example: http://www.m2sys.com/palm-vein...

But we also need to realize that IT IS NOT EVERYONE'S BUSINESS WHAT WE ALL DO. The first step in securing freedom is privacy. When you are tracked, you are losing your freedom, whether you realize it or not. And the whole TSA security theater is a scam on everyone.

Re:Source the problem

[wonkavader]

Let's get a similar image which includes the US, shall we?

http://fm.cnbc.com/application...