TSA checkpoint efficiency continues to struggle
GSA takes a look at the “extra minute” promised when the rules against small scissors were revoked
No big surprises here for anyone who had travelled by airplane in the last fifty years. According to a recently released report by the Government Accountability Office, TSA has failed to take advantage of the time and labor saving realized when, back in December 2005, the agency decided to once again carry small scissors and other small tool aboard flights. That decision was supposed to have “freed up an average of one minute of inspection time per airport screener per day,” but that is only worthwhile if that extra minute is being dedicated to something useful, such as identifying explosives. This is not occuring, GSN reported. Or, if it is occuring, TSA has not found a way of proving it. According to GSN, GAO “recommended that TSA implement better measurement methods to be able to determine how those freed up hours were actually being spent.” The GAO study analyzed TSA effectiveness using various factors, including Threat Image Projection testing, training data, and interviews.
