TSA Warns Travelers Be Prepared During Busy Travel Season
By Joe Holden
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The TSA wants travelers to be prepared for the busy summer travel season that's ahead. Many will encounter long lines as the TSA struggles with a shortage of screening agents.
The TSA is asking that passengers be proactive and do all they can to help speed up those lines.
In recent weeks, the TSA has taken a beating over long lines in many of the nation's airports. They blame that on an uptick in the amount of passengers that are flying. They say it's up seven percent, just this year.
They are now asking passengers to be aware and pay attention when heading through screenings.
In what the TSA called an "unscientific experiment," we saw a staged security screening to show how the line that people love to hate can quickly bottle neck.
A group of "prepared travelers," and a group of "unprepared travelers," made their way through the screening.
The prepared group of ten passengers made it through the line in one minute and 45 seconds. Their laptops were out of their bags. Their pockets were empty and they had no water bottle issues.
"That really helped them get through and as you can see, there are really no slow ups at the line," said a TSA spokesman.
Then there was the unprepared group. There were several issues with the unprepared group as a one man in line made it clear that he would be late for his flight. They took more than eight minutes to get through the line.
So, what is really going on? Why is a government agency, that some in congress say is failing, doing all of this?
"My goal here is not to blame passengers for longer lines. I merely want to point out that passenger preparedness can have a significant impact on how quickly travelers can get through the checkpoint," the spokesman said.
Days before the busy Memorial Day weekend, the TSA is trying to shake off sharp criticism over long lines in some cities. Recent TSA troubles have travelers thinking that there could be lengthy waits.
