With more and more people traveling, airport queues have become pretty crazy. Paid options in the U.S., such as TSAPreck and CLEAR, help. But if you don’t have either of those (not everyone does; not everyone travels enough to warrant it), you’re stuck going through the entire queue, which could be 60+ minutes at busier times.
For over two years, CLEAR has been introducing its Reserve program, a reservation system for the TSA security checkpoint queues. The program is absolutely free. Passengers can book appointments online, days before their flight. Reservations require travelers to enter flight details and the number of people in the traveling party to view available times. Once at the airport, travelers will access a security checkpoint lane designated for Reserve passengers. After scanning a confirmation QR code with staff, travelers can enter the separate security lane.
Here’s a video that goes into more detail:
To date, Reserve powered by CLEAR is in 18 airports:
Within the U.S.
- Arizona: Phoenix Sky-Harbor International Airport, Terminals 3 and 4
- California: Los Angeles International Airport, Terminals 7 and 8 (called LAX Fast Lane)
- Colorado: Denver
- Florida: Orlando International Airport, Terminal A and B
- Minnesota: Minneapolis International Airport, Terminal 2 (effective May 31, 2023)
- New York: John F. Kennedy International Airport, Terminal 4
- Texas: Houston
- Washington: Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, Checkpoint 3 and 5 (called SEA Spot Saver)
Outside the U.S.
- Canada: Calgary International Airport, Security D and E (called YYC Express)
- Canada: Edmonton International Airport, (called YEG Express)
- Canada: Halifax
- Canada: Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport, (called YUL Express)
- Canada: Toronto Pearson International Airport, (called YYZ Express)
- Canada: Vancouver International Airport, (called YVR Express)
- Amsterdam (AMS)
- England (LTN)
- Germany: Frankfurt Airport, (called FRA SmartWay)
- Italy: Rome Airport FCO, (Called QPass Security)
Non-CLEAR airport programs
CLEAR has been working hard to expand its Reserve program however other airports have their own “make a reservation to get on the queue” system via alternate methods:
Airports within the U.S.
- Texas: Dallas-Ft. Worth International Airport, (Terminal D)
Airports outside the U.S.
- England: Birmingham Airport offers Express Lane (£5.00 per person)
- India: India is piloting their version of biometrics for queues. It’s called DigiYatra. Select airports around the country are offering dedicated security queues during the pilot program.
Not just airports!
Airlines with “skip the queue” options
Not only airports, but dozens of airlines have also gotten into the “skip the security” option, or have dedicated, presumably faster queues (for a price):
- Fast Track is available in 300 airports worldwide (it’s on nearly every continent!), and nearly 100 airlines from around the world participate so you can purchase your Fast Track reservation when you buy your airline tickets. Check your airline and airport(s) for details on their participation in the Fast Track program.
- FrenchBee also has a “skip the queue” system, called Line-Jump.
Almost there!
There’s also at least one airport that’s getting ready to launch a “skip the queue” option:
Within the U.S.:
- South Carolina: Charleston International Airport, (called CHS Reserve – looks like it will be powered by CLEAR)
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