Airport lines stretch for hours, forcing travelers to pivot to cars and trains

(Bloomberg) -- Fliers across the US encountered some of the longest airport security lines since a partial government shutdown started in mid February, with travelers increasingly seeking out alternatives to planes such as rental cars and trains.

Social media showed passengers queuing outside Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport early Thursday morning with the facility’s website defaulting to a page advising flyers to arrive at least four hours early for screenings. In Baltimore, one of the security check points was closed, leading to long lines at others sites, the airport said on its website.

Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport warned the situation could get even worse as an influx of travelers arrive in the city for several major events, including the NCAA’s March Madness basketball tournament. Two of the Sweet 16 games are scheduled to be played in the city on Thursday. Officials said that wait times for Transportation Security Administration screenings may top four hours.

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Joshua Rodriguez spent seven hours at Houston’s main airport on Wednesday, four of which were waiting in line at security. If the shutdown continues, he’s opting to drive for vacation getaways rather than take another flight.

“If the drive is going to take 12 hours and it took me 12 hours from the moment I got to the airport till I got home then I might as well have driven,” he said. “The flight was supposed to be the quicker option.”

Airport Wait Times Worst In TSA History After 480 Officers Leave

TSA officers have been working without pay as a Department of Homeland Security funding stalemate in Washington continues to drag on amid disputes over immigration enforcement policy. Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Thursday Republicans sent Democrats a “final offer” to end the impasse. The Washington Post reported that Thune told Republican senators that the White House is considering bypassing Congress to pay TSA officers if a deal with Democrats can’t be reached.

On Wednesday more than 3,000 TSA agents had called out, according to DHS data. Atlanta’s main airport had more than 40% of agents absent, among the highest in the US. Nearly 500 officers have quit over the course of the shutdown, Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said in an emailed statement.

“This has led to the highest wait times in TSA history, with some wait times greater than 4.5 hours,” Acting Administrator Ha Nguyen McNeill told lawmakers Wednesday at a House Homeland Security Committee hearing. “We did see spikes in attrition.”

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To help ease the staffing shortages, the Trump administration has deployed Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to airports. Those officials have been helping with crowd control and other non-specialized tasks, but have recently been directed to help verify passenger IDs.

“After receiving standard TSA training curriculum, ICE officers are guarding entrances and exits, assisting with logistics, doing crowd control, and verifying identification using TSA equipment and standard operating procedures,” Bis said. “The more support we have available, the more efficiently TSA can focus on their highly specialized screening roles to efficiently get airport security lines moving faster.”

Some travelers are considering alternative modes of transportation — switching to trains or cars, even canceling trips entirely. Rental car company Hertz saw search traffic jump 15% over the last week, signaling visitors are considering other ways to reach their destinations as TSA lines get longer, according to a spokesperson. The company’s stock rose as much as 16% on Thursday.

Florida’s Brightline train, which runs from Miami to Orlando set new ridership records over the past two weekends, according to Patrick Goddard, chief executive officer for the private passenger rail. Goddard said more than 40,000 riders hopped on the train each of the last two weekends, bolstered by spring break visitors and major events like the Miami Open.

“Ongoing airport congestion is also prompting more travelers to choose Brightline as an alternative to flying whenever possible as well,” Goddard said in an emailed statement.

Karah Elizabeth, 31, an indie folk band manager from Brooklyn, New York, planned to fly out of LaGuardia to visit her family in Chicago. She canceled her trip after waiting in line for two hours and realized she was going to miss her flight.

“Right now I’m definitely avoiding going on an airplane or an airport,” she said. Elizabeth rebooked her Chicago trip for May, betting that lines will ease in a few weeks.

--With assistance from Dina Katgara, Myles Miller and Matt Turner.

(Updates with report on possible White House action in sixth paragraph.)