TSA’s big selling points for its PreCheck program have always included the lure of shorter, faster lines at the airport for members, and it says that’s still holding up despite more than doubling membership in five years, and a 44% surge during the pandemic.
The 2017 total of 12.6 million members has grown to 27.4 million; in 2019, the last pre-pandemic year it had reached 18.9 million.
The agency says that in June, a month of heavy travel, 94% of PreCheck members had to wait five minutes or less to get to the front of the security lines, even as crowds piled up at other lanes. In part that’s because PreCheck members are generally not required to shed shoes and belts, or to take out their laptops and 3-2-1 bags.
TSA says it wants to continue expanding the program, not only because it’s convenient for travelers, but also because it allows the agency to shift its manpower and focus. A TSA official told The Points Guy site this month that “Growing the number of trusted travelers allows the TSA to focus its limited resources on unknown and high-risk travelers, making the overall security checkpoint more effective and efficient.”
