Air travelers who resent waiting in line will get some relief when Los Angeles International Airport opens its first two “innovation lanes,” which are designed to speed security screening by up to 30 percent, by the end of the week, it was reported today.
The two new lanes are scheduled to open at Terminal 7, home of United Airlines, the Los Angeles Times reported. The Chicago-based carrier helped the Transportation Security Administration pay for the new equipment but declined to say how much it invested in the lanes.
Innovation lanes were first introduced this summer by Delta Air Lines at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, according to The Times. They use multiple conveyor belts to allow five passengers to simultaneously unload bags, shoes and clothes into bins to be screened by the TSA.
Airline officials say the lanes speed up the TSA screening lines because the multiple conveyor belts eliminate bottlenecks caused by travelers who are slow to unload their baggage and personal items. Other passengers using the lane at the same time can simply slide their bins around the slower traveler.
The two new innovation lanes are replacing regular screening lanes used for United passengers. They are the first of at least nine additional innovation lanes expected to be installed at LAX by the end of next year at various terminals, airport officials told The Times.
