The Transportation Security Administration says travelers can help keep the line at the airports moving by being prepared as they approach the security checkpoint.
TSA spokesperson Lisa Farbstein says the agency knows there has been a big problem with lines for security. Congress has just approved the hiring of more agents and agent overtime, but Farbstein says travelers can help cut wait times by being prepared as they approach security. She says a simple thing like leaving a laptop in a carry-on bag can stop the line cold for up to four minutes.
“What’s going to happen is ‘Bag check! Ok, whose is this?’. You’ve got to open it, pull out the laptop. We’re going to do a trace explosives swab of it to make sure nothing’s dangerous, nothing explosive. We put it back in the bag, and then it’s got to go back through the X-ray machine.”
Two other tips: use the “Can I Bring” TSA app to find out what can or can’t be brought through security, and sign up for TSA Pre-Check, the known traveler program.