You can say a lot of negative things about the TSA. But you have to give them credit where credit is due. I mean, after the program was established in the aftermath of 9/11, they’ve made changes in response to the realities of the times, but also what they themselves have seen as problems. So over time, there has been progression:
They’ve also cleared the way to make our waits on the queue for the security checkpoint faster and more efficient. Besides the obvious PreCheck, there’s also:
But like all technology, sometimes there are glitches that need to be worked out.
We wrote a piece back in February that TSA’s software was having problems recognizing new versions of Colorado’s driver’s licenses. That made lines at the TSA checkpoint go slower, especially in Colorado. But it was also a potential source of frustration for any Coloradan who would get stopped, potentially time and time again.
There was a workaround, of course – use a different form of I.D. But the ideal thing would be to actually fix the problem.
Again, to give TSA credit, they did own up to the problem.
“It (Colorado drivers’ licenses not being recognized) was happening frequently, I don’t have a percentage, but it was a known issue. Officers knew it, people knew that,” TSA spokesperson Lorie Dankers told Denver’s 9News.
She said the C.A.T. (Credential Authentication Technology. TSA’s new scanners) was the problem. TSA agents use the C.A.T. to scan IDs to see passengers’ info such as name, date of birth, flight information and whether or not they have PreCheck, to ensure they’re scheduled to be on a plane later that day.
Anyway, TSA apparently updated the C.A.T. database of IDs, and it meant the vast majority of Colorado driver’s licenses are now being accepted as the actual, real ID that it is.
But it’s not 100% foolproof. Apparently SOME driver’s licenses still aren’t working, and the TSA doesn’t know why. Dankers suggests that people with Colorado driver’s licenses also download the state’s mobile ID app as a workaround, just in case their physical driver’s license still doesn’t work in TSA’s C.A.T.s. She says the digital system doesn’t use the same scanner, so it shouldn’t have the same issue with not being able to scan.
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