Shorter PreCheck Lines? Check!

Have you noticed fewer flyers clogging the TSA PreCheck lines to clear airport security? If you haven’t yet, you soon will. And there’s a reason.

The Los Angeles Times reports that the TSA recently did away with one of the program’s longstanding unpublished features: managed inclusion. Under managed inclusion, TSA agents could direct travelers who had not signed up for the PreCheck service into the PreCheck line.

That policy made sense in the service’s early days, when fewer flyers subscribed to PreCheck and the dedicated lines were often underused or empty. But as subscriber numbers swelled and the lines became increasingly congested, managed inclusion came to be viewed more as a problem than a solution. And so, sensibly, it has been discontinued.

That’s good news for those who already pay $85 and undergo a background check to qualify for five years’ worth of PreCheck access. And it’s all the more reason for travelers who are not PreCheck customers to consider signing up. Those managed inclusion passengers weren’t just adding to the sheer numbers lining up for processing, they were hindrances in yet another respect: since they hadn’t enrolled in PreCheck, they were unaware of its benefits, and continued to remove their shoes, ready their laptops, and so on, further slowing down the lines. Removing them from the PreCheck queue should expedite the flow markedly.

PreCheck is now available at more than 150 U.S. airports. Subscribers gain access to dedicated security-clearance lines, with no need to remove their shoes, belts, or jackets, or to de-bag their laptops. Participating airlines: Air Canada, Alaska, American, Delta, Hawaiian, JetBlue, OneJet, Southwest, Sun Country, United, Virgin America, WestJet.

PreCheck is also included as a benefit of the Global Entry program.

Reader Reality Check

Are you a PreCheck customer? Worth it?

More From Smartertravel:

• Seven Things You Should Never Say to the TSA
• How Much Space Do You Lose in an 18-Inch Carry-On?
• How to Navigate the Airport Like a Pro During the Holidays

This article originally appeared on FrequentFlier.com.