New lines have cut wait times at Hartsfield

Those snaking, hour-long security lines that for years have infuriated passengers at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport might be a thing of the past.

A $26 million security checkpoint expansion, better staffing by the Transportation Security Administration and specially designated security lanes have all but eliminated waits of more than 20 minutes during the last three months.

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Curtis Compton/ccompton@ajc.com

Travelers had a short wait going through Hartsfield-Jackson on Tuesday.

Shorter waits

Hartsfield-Jackson security lines exceeding 20 minutes:

	2007	2008
Nov.	63	0
Dec.	64	3
	2008	2009
Jan.	33	2

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Ten new security gates opened at Hartsfield-Jackson about three months back — there are now 32 — and the airport added so-called “black diamond” lanes to separate more experienced travelers from their less-traveled counterparts. The airport also opened Clear lanes that cost passengers about $128 a year and are intended primarily for business travelers.

“It’s dramatically better,” said Vinings loan officer Kevin Jones. “I think they’ve got it down.”

Jones, who flies three or four times a month, said his waits now average about 10-20 minutes during the busiest travel times. And often, the wait is much less, he said.

Statistics compiled by the airport indicate there were 63 waits of more than 20 minutes during October 2007, but none in November 2008, despite the hectic Thanksgiving travel rush, often the busiest of the year. In December 2007, there were 64 waits of 20-minutes-plus, but in 2008, there were only three. Despite a decrease in air traffic nationwide, December was a record year for Hartsfield-Jackson.

The airport is the world’s busiest, with 90 million passengers — a record — passing through its concourses last year.

The good news continued last month when there were only two instances when lines stretched more than 20 minutes. The January before, there were 33 times when lines were longer than the 20-minute maximum the airport strives to maintain.

“The true test of this enhancement was seen during the Thanksgiving holiday period last year when there was only one occasion when the wait time exceeded 10 minutes, and that was just one of 16 minutes,” said Ben DeCosta, the airport’s general manager.

During the normally busiest period of the day — 6 a.m. until 8:30 a.m. — the average line in November and December did not exceed six minutes. During the same time period on Mondays — normally the busiest day of the week — it did not exceed 10 minutes.

The airport’s major carriers, Delta Air Lines and AirTran Airways, agreed that anecdotal and statistical evidence points to much shorter security lines in recent months.

“Just a year ago, you had people getting to the airport 90 minutes early, and they were still missing their flights because they were getting caught in the security lines,” said AirTran spokesman Tad Hutcheson. “We’re not having that anymore. The waits are down, and people are getting through efficiently.”

Delta, which had long-pushed for a redesign of the security gates, agreed with AirTran’s assessment.

“Delta lobbied on behalf of our customers for many years to redesign the Atlanta security checkpoint, and we are finding that TSA’s recent expansion has allowed our customers to speed through the airport with new ease,” said Delta spokesman Kent Landers. He said the long lines have been “all but eliminated.”

TSA spokesman John Allen said TSA, which got a new Atlanta head of operations last year, has increased its use of part-time workers to give the agency maximum scheduling flexibility. That allows TSA to swarm officers to specific gates during peak travel times.

“We’ve seen few instances when the times have even approached 20 minutes,” Allen said.