Are you a good skier? Do you tackle the “black diamond” slopes without hesitation? Well, the TSA has a new challenge for you — the “black diamond” security line. In an effort to reduce the stress that travelers feel when families are holding up the security line — or when pushy frequent fliers try to cut in front of those families, the TSA has been testing a “self-select” program that allows fliers to choose which line they would feel most comfortable in.
The TSA says the program has been a big success and has expanded it to 21 airports. They claim the expert lanes move faster and families are receiving more assistance and sounding fewer alarms. There’s even a “casual” lane for travelers who know the rules but don’t like feeling rushed by those pushy “black diamond” people.
Since it appears to be here to stay, If you’d like to strap on your bureaucracy skis and give the “black diamond” line a shot, the TSA offers these helpful tips:
- DO: Wear slip-on shoes. Laces and zippers will slow you down.
- DO: empty your pockets and put loose items in your purse, jacket pockets, or carry-on bag while before you get to the checkpoint.
- DO: place magazines, snacks or souvenirs purchased in the airport in a carry-on bag or purse before you get to the checkpoint. Consolidating your items before they go in the bins will help you recompose quickly and clear the checkpoint exit area.
- DO: have your liquids baggie out of your carry-on, and make sure you don’t have any loose liquid items in your purse or carry-on bag. Notify a security officer if you have any exempt liquids so an officer can provide additional screening if necessary.
- DO: put your shoes and coat in the first bin and any carry-on bags in other bins. Then after your bins go through the x-ray, you can slip your shoes and coat on while waiting for your other items to come out.
- DO: put your laptop bag in the bin before your laptop. Then as the bins come out of the x-ray, just slip it back in, zip and go.
- DO: put your bins on the belt for the x-ray machine vertically versus horizontally. This allows the security officers to view more than one image at a time, and helps speed up the process.
- DON’T: try to put shoes or boots with zippers or laces on right when you take them out of the bins. Move to the side to let other passengers take their items and go.
For a list of airports that feature the “black diamond” lane, click here.
Black Diamond Self Select Lanes [TSA]
PREVIOUSLY: TSA Brings All The Signage Of Skiing To Security Lines, None Of The Fun
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wow. a seemingly good idea from the TSA. i am shocked.
The “Black Diamond” line at Midway is a joke. My wife and I traveled 2 weeks ago and entered the “expert” line, there was a lady with 4 kids in front of us, and the screener who was checking ID though he was sherlock holmes and was taking about 3x longer to check ID’s than his counterpart next to him. It was actually SLOWER in the expert line than in the “casual traveler” line, and there were fewer people.
My routine is to always go to the shortest line.
meh. I’m a double diamond guy.
They have this system in Orlando and it is a joke. People get in the shortest line, they don’t even look at the signs.
Pretty soon we are going to need a special travelers license. I love how the idea of having to present your “papers” was one of the things Americans found so horrible about the Nazi’s and now Americans are practically strip searched before taking a domestic flight. I usually like to get to know a person before they are looking up my ass with a flashlight.
@Pylon83: I think it depends when you go. I was at MDW at around 5am yesterday (Monday) and it seemed a BIT faster, but not a huge improvement. Everyone in line seemed to understand what was going on, too. Actually, like an idiot, I threw my laptop bag on the belt before taking my laptop out. I got scolded for it, since I was in the expert line, and I was actually pretty glad they’re enforcing it. On the other hand, my co-worker said when he was in the “Expert” line, the woman in front of him did not present ID to the person in front of security. When he asked for, she was dismayed and asked “Why would you need to see my ID?” The only way this concept will work is if they send people like that to the back of the casual line.
Just flew out of Midway on Thursday where this system is in use, and I used the “casual traveler” line. It’s great to not have to deal with tons of screaming kids and clueless parents in front of you.
And as someone who doesn’t travel all the time, it’s nice to not piss of the more experienced ones.
Security went much faster than in Denver where this isn’t in practice.
You should fly with me, and whichever line I pick, you go in the other one. Inevitably, regardless how short the line, whenever I get in, it immediately comes to a screeching halt.
Just read over your tips and…
“DO: have your liquids baggie out of your carry-on, and make sure you don’t have any loose liquid items in your purse or carry-on bag. Notify a security officer if you have any exempt liquids so an officer can provide additional screening if necessary.”
I’m not going to say you should break any rules, but if you ask any frequent traveler, this is NOT the thing to do…
Seems like a good idea but never under estimate stupid. and with TSA and the general public both going at it stupidity will prevail.
@catcherintheeye: Just flew out of Denver on Saturday – they are using the “ski lanes” now as well. And like everywhere else, families with little kids are clogging these up as well.
Where the terrain park line?
i loved the guy in front of me in Puerto Rico who, seemingly an experienced traveller, then proceeded to collect his belongings, and redress himself immediately at the end of the xray. the line backed up for 5 full minutes.
awesome.
I forget which airport it was, but my wife and I encountered this system in one of them on a recent trip. It seemed like a good idea, except when we got there, there was a TSA person directing people to the shortest line. Sort of defeated the purpose..
@sir_pantsalot: Horrible punctuation and grammar will also prevail.
Quick question — if you wear flip flops, do you need to take them off? I’m talking about the cheap, thin-soled ones.
@MissTicklebritches: Yes you still ahve to take them off. We are not talking about common sense. We are dealing with mindless drones who have been told that shoes need to be removed.
Last time I tried the black diamond line I tripped on the moguls. Talk about an embarrassment. My 3 oz liquid bottles went flying and my shoes got stuck in the conveyor belt. Next time I’ll stick to the blue square line.
Next you will have some fight about some person getting into the wrong line and the sorts…
@ShadowFalls: Well, this “special lanes” thing can only go so far wiht the constant demise of common sense and/or courtesy that’s happening now. People will flock to the black diamond lane, even with children, b/c it seems faster even if they aren’t “expert travelers”, just b/c they want to get through asap and don’t care about the concept of other people in the world
Just by looking at the graphics I’d choose the one that looks like a man. The black diamond graphic looks like a woman.. I could be wrong. Also how would a person who’s not an expert traveller know which lane to go to anyways?
@MissTicklebritches: ohh yes. you have to take them off no matter what and prance around barefoot. i still find this preferable to dealing with laces.
Neither airport I’m going to in a few weeks has this. Damn it!
@ShadowFalls: Not our fault that the general public is full of illiterate idiots who can’t even understand symbols now…
@sir_pantsalot: Yeah, I found out recently that even 10 month old babies are not allowed to wear slip-on shoes through security.
It’s a nice idea but it won’t work. Everyone will think they are an expert traveler or go in the shortest line.
Also, the signage for this program is very poor. The traveller is supposed to understand what line to get in from the signs, but you can’t read them unless you’re really close. All you get is an impression of a woman, a man, and a family. If asked to interpret that, most people would probably define the lines by a man’s line, a woman’s line, and a family line.
I’m amazed that a lot of security checkpoints don’t have more than one or two chairs nearby in which you can sit to put your shoes, etc. back on. You’d think that they’d realize that having chairs, tables, etc. nearby AFTER the checkpoint would help prevent backups after the fact as people get organized again.
@Myrddraal: yea, I love it. We have been told for years in school (back in the day) that the great thing about this country is that we didn’t need any for of identification to travel within the borders…sadly, I can see checkpoints being setup at state borders “in the name of security”.
I guess the US is now the Fourth Reich. I shall go hide all my books now.
Next time I fly I’ll be sporting fuzzy slippers and an open-back hospital gown. Cavity search? No problem! Double-diamond all the way, woo hoo!
Grreeeat, something else for the lady and I to argue about on vacation.
“C’mon honey, black diamond, WE CAN DO IT”
“Awww, look at the family line with all the cute kids”
“Now I know why you cant bring weapons to the airport!”
@legwork: I bet those parts have been cut out of the social studies books.
“Teacher why is page 25 missing”
“Shhh, Jimmy they will hear you and come to protect us from your questions”
It does seem very flawed. I haven’t been to an airport recently, but it seems the very slow minded families would not bother to read the signs and see “Oh lawdd people are going into a longer line.. I will out smart them and go into the shorter line! HA TAKE THAT SUPODITDS”. In theory its a good idea… One problem.. people do not read..
The way to enforce it like someone said earlier, is to tell them to move to the appropriate line. Yes they will complain they waited all this time to get up to the front, but their fault for not reading.
TSA to the rescue again!
/fail
“Then after your bins go through the x-ray, you can slip your shoes and coat on while waiting for your other items to come out.”
Isn’t this a bad thing to suggest? Maybe this is just me, but in all of the security lines I go through, there’s not a lot of separation between the items – they all come shooting out of the machine in quick succession. I cram my arms full of my crap – jacket, shoes, belt, carryon, laptop, liquids, etc. (and I tend to travel light) – and stagger 20 feet away so I can repack myself. Why ENCOURAGE people to hold up the line?
Thank goodness business travel only takes me one state over these days. Who ever thought a 4-hour road trip could be faster than a 45 minute flight?
at some airports, there is an experts line — it’s called the Clear pass.
You won’t find any families or clueless people paying $100 each to fly there. Problem solved.
@helloashley: “Vaginas over here! Dicks over here! Mr. and Mrs. Dick and their mini-genitals, here!”
@B: That is embarrassing. It’s why I take my car and drink hot cocoa. Which is hazardous while driving. But anyway.
I hate flying. If I had to do it, I would, but I can’t afford it and I’m an anxious person, so they’d probably assume I was carrying drugs or explosives. That’s what the last cop who pulled me over did anyway.
Which bin does the colostomy bag go into?
This would be a great idea if they actually held people to the signs. Flying out of Logan 4 times in the last two months and trying to use the black diamond lane resulted in nothing more than the same frustration as before…Families, idiots, etc…
I recently went through this process in Seattle, where it seemed to work very well. Self-identifying as an expert traveler appeared to keep everyone on their best travel behavior. However, the TSA needs to do a better job of publicizing the new system, so people know what to expect before they get to the security line.
That said, even in the Expert line, people were fussing with their bags and shoes at the end of the conveyer belt. Take your things and go! That’s what the chairs, five feet away, are for.
I can not GLOW about this line ENOUGH! I had to go on a business trip earlier in the month (MSP), and had the opportunity to use the black diamond. We were through in what seemed like less than a minute.
In the OTHER lines there were families clogging up the lines, complaining along the lines of “WHAT DO YOU MEAN I CAN’T TAKE 10 GALLONS OF SUNSCREEN ON THE PLANE?”
We were through, shoes back on, while they were still arguing with the first people.
Expert Traveler line FTW!
They need a fourth, S***head line. That’s what line you’re forced to stand in if you repeatedly hold up any of the other lines.
Whore diamonds?
Sorry I thought I was reading Wonkette for a second…
Will they have a line for Whore Diamonds? Because I’ll totally hover around that line.
Okay, well I’m flying out of San Diego in two days, by myself with one carry-on. Gonna give the black diamonds a try, unless there is a shorter line elsewhere.
personally, i think a better idea would be to have roving tsa agents checking boarding passes & ID while people were queued & then pre-selecting travelers for a 2nd express line based on their preparedness to pass thru security.
this would give the added bonus of having a safety valve for those that have little time to get thru screenings.
i’ve found that airports that send roving guards down the line to check passes, prepare people for the process & answer questions are much faster than the traditional 6 agents hovering around the checkpoint.
@Trai_Dep: …great minds…
I flew out of Denver on Sunday. They had this system, but the expert line had one of those naked picture machines. I went through the family line.
My girlfriend and I flew out of Seattle late last week and noticed this new system. We decided to use the “expert” line, and it actually ended up being slower by our estimation due to the fact that there were two casual lines but only one expert line running at the time. The airport wasn’t very busy at that time, though, so it really didn’t matter; I’d be curious to see whether it actually helps during more busy times.
I also noticed that they weren’t checking boarding passes as we passed through the metal detectors. I’m not sure if it was because they were less busy, or if it was a new policy to speed things up.
What really annoys me is how the x-ray belts work: I had to wait around for them to scan the stuff belonging to the person behind me because my bin of stuff was on the belt just outside the scanner.
@Trai_Dep: Minimum 3 whore diamond rating.
@IphtashuFitz: Maybe we need a list of which airports have the chairs and which don’t. I know Baltimore/Washington (BWI) does.
1 more tip they forgot
DON’T: Fly, whenever possible.