Things might become more tolerable for travellers in America this summer

By A.W. | WASHINGTON, DC

GULLIVER was flying at the end of last week, and received an e-mail from Spirit Airlines with the foreboding subject line “URGENT: Get to the airport early.” The message warned:

Baltimore, MD (BWI) is experiencing longer than usual lines and extensive wait times at TSA security checkpoints, causing some travelers to miss flights.

It's been all over the news. Check out some articles about it here, here, and here. We don't want this to happen to you, so please arrive at the airport at least 2 hours before departure.

Spirit is right: the daunting queues are the talk of America this summer. We recently rounded up some novel suggestions from outside the typical world of airport security—ranging from economics to architecture to dog training—that might speed things up. Unfortunately, they are unlikely to be implemented any time soon.

But there’s good news, too. In the past few days there has been tangible progress in a number of areas that could make things more tolerable for travellers in America this summer. They won’t revolutionise the way we move through security lines, but they could make a difference in small but meaningful ways.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has asked technology companies whether they have any ways to screen passengers without making them take off their shoes or coats. That would not only reduce the annoyance of passing through security, but would greatly speed up the process. The agency followed up that request with another one on that calls on companies to inform the TSA of technology that could more quickly and thoroughly screen carry-on items.

In a surprising development, the House of Representatives actually managed to pass a bill on Tuesday—unanimously. The famously gridlocked chamber approved a measure that would authorise small changes to quicken the security process. These include shifting some of the derided “behaviour detection officers”, who are trained to spot suspicious body language and the like, to regular screening duties. Employees who aren’t qualified to be screeners, meanwhile, could be transferred to tasks like restocking bins. It would also force the TSA to work with private vendors to encourage more people to sign up for its PreCheck programme—whose shortcomings are responsible for some of this summer’s issues—by offering online enrollment and other improvements. The bill still needs to pass the Senate.

Then there is another measure making its way through the House. It would increase TSA funding next fiscal year to $7.6 billion—an increase of $163, $21.8m more than the Obama administration requested. The measure was approved by a House committee last Thursday. Since a Senate committee already unanimously approved a $7.7 billion funding bill, extra cash for the agency appears inevitable.

If a group of Democrats in the House has its way, airport screening could get another boost. In a letter on Wednesday, 70 Democrats urged Congress to remove the “arbitrary” cap on TSA screeners. Currently, the agency is not allowed to have more than 45,000 security officers checking passengers at airports across the country. It currently employs fewer than that, but had more than 47,000 full-time screeners in 2013, when there was no limit in place. The cap appears to be partly responsible for the TSA hiring of part-time officers, which has contributed to a high turnover rate and poor morale.

But there could yet be a wrinkle to all of this good news. Last year, when undercover agents tried to slip fake weapons and bombs through security, the TSA failed to catch them 96% of the time. It was a huge embarrassment for the agency. Now, the Department of Homeland Security has announced that it will conduct another round of covert tests this summer. The TSA will be hoping for a far better performance review. But if the screeners again fail to catch most of the mock-offenders, the agency might be forced to make its security procedures even more thorough. That, in turn, could slow down queues further—and negate much of the progress that the other measures from the TSA and Congress might bring about.