TSA: Expect Longer Airport Lines This Summer
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork)-- The Transportation Security Administration is already warning travelers that if you're flying this summer, expect longer lines than the ones you see now.
The travel nightmare can be attributed to fewer screeners, tighter budgets, new checkpoints, and more passengers, as reported by the New York Times.
"This is going to be a rough summer; there is no doubt about it," Gary Rasicot, TSA's chief of operations, told the Times. "We are probably not at the staffing level we would like to be to address the volume. This is why we are talking about people getting to the airport a little earlier than planned."
The lines at LaGuardia Airport sometimes snake through the terminal, WCBS 880's Peter Haskell reported.
Stan Schneider is a flier who thinks the problem is staffing.
"It's like when you go to the bank and stand in line, can't you give me another teller? Frustrating," he said.
Joe Brancatelli runs a business traveler website.
"They have people watching people, watching people and no one actually screening passengers," he said.
Officials said the number of TSA screeners has declined by roughly 5,800 due to tighter budgets.
Micheal Boyd is an aviation consultant.
"We make this better by getting people to run the TSA who are competent," he said.
The agency indicates it is working to hire more screeners.