"Sea-Tac undecided on Registered Traveler plan"

Tuesday, May 23, 2006

Sea-Tac undecided on Registered Traveler plan 
By Carol Pucci 
The Seattle (WA) Times


Seattle-Tacoma International Airport hasn't yet decided if it will
participate in a proposed federal Registered Traveler program designed to
speed frequent flyers through airline security.

"We're still on the fence," said airport spokesman Bob Parker. Airport
officials are still waiting for more details from the Transportation
Security Administration on what the benefits would be for travelers, Parker
said.

Modeled on a pilot project concluded at five U.S. airports last September,
and an ongoing experiment in Orlando, Fla., the Register Traveler program
would be a voluntary effort aimed at frequent travelers, specifically
business travelers willing to undergo a background check and pay $80-$100 a
year to avoid long waits by joining separate security lines.

TSA says it is moving ahead with plans for another pilot and hopes to have
10-20 airports signed on by the end of this year. Plans have been to tap
private companies to collect personal data and issue biometric pass cards,
but the idea lost steam after TSA said that registered travelers would still
be subject to the same random secondary screenings as regular travelers, and
wouldn't be exempt from removing shoes or lap top computers, at least not
right away. Some airports said they wouldn't participate, and others, like
Sea-Tac, remain undecided.

"If we're going to charge people for something, there needs to be a
significant benefit, and frankly, the ordinary screening has gotten very,
very good," Parker said. "This concept was thought up when we used to have
lines out to the (parking) garage. But things improved, and even last August
when the airport was at its busiest, the wait at security was rarely more
than 20 minutes, he said.

New York-based Verified Identity Pass, which operates the Orlando program,
has signed on airports in San Jose, Indianapolis and Cincinnati. Saflink, a
Bellevue security company, has teamed with Microsoft and Expedia Corporate
Travel to also compete for airport contracts.

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