It's extortion. "Security" sets up stupid hoops you must jump through for no good reason, then Clear extorts money from you to avoid them. Not a game you can win.
The airport authority will receive a $500,000 minimum total annual payment from Verified to operate at the airports, Hamilton said.
This is a big reason that many airports want to eliminate the elite lines. And once Clear gets pervasive at airports, they can use elimination of elite lines as a sales point.... because it will allow folks who pay up to get special treatment at other places.
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I wouldn't call it extortion, any more than allowing hybrids to drive in the carpool lanes forces me to buy a hybrid. I probably spend 10 hours a year waiting in line at OAK, so paying $100 or so to cut that by 75% would be entirely reasonable.
It is simply wrong that billions upon billions of our tax dollars fund the workfare program that is the TSA, but a citizen must expend an additonal $128 for just a smidgen of the efficiency that we all should be enjoying now given what we collectively pay.
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Clear or unclear, keep in mind that you can go through either T1 (everyone but Southwest) or T2 (Southwest) security, regardless of where your gate is. This can easily save you 20-30 minutes at peak times.
If you face a really long line at one terminal, do a quick jog over to the other to see if you can save some time. In my experience, T1 follows a business traveller pattern, with heavy traffic in the morning and a big drop off after that. T2 has more of a leisure pattern, with hoards of people on Friday and Sunday afternoons.
WOW! I'll finally be able to book flights from OAK again. The morning madness was so awful at both terminals I have avoided it for about a year. I use it at SFO and SJC. It works great. I can get up forty minutes before my flight boards out of SJC, shower, drive to the airport, park, clear security, and still have time to read the paper before boarding begins.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by curbcrusher
Clear spares you only the line.
It is simply wrong that billions upon billions of our tax dollars fund the workfare program that is the TSA, but a citizen must expend an additonal $128 for just a smidgen of the efficiency that we all should be enjoying now given what we collectively pay.
Hear, hear! Looked recently at the itemized fees on a ticket? The case could be made that we're already paying more than the Clear membership fee annually for an efficient, as well as effective, service. And as curbcrusher says about "workfare", why do we have to have the redundancy of the (non-TSA) ticket tickers at security?
"On the other hand", FYI, since OAK's kluge hasn't materially changed yet: Hyatt Gold Passport has a running promotion to join Clear free for a year. I don't remember if it's targetted. I'll try to find the link, but for those intrested, there's a thread about it on the Gold Passport board.
On the other hand again, there was an article in USA Today a couple of weeks ago, saying that there's been a very low uptake (enrollment) with a parallel program that has a more generic name. Price and the fact that most people in the bull's eye already have elite lines were cited as the reasons. (No mention of Clear, per se.)
Perhaps Clear should co-market with Southwest instead of Hyatt?
Correct. They offer a free year of Clear to their upper elite members--Diamond and possibly Platinum also.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Firewind
"On the other hand", FYI, since OAK's kluge hasn't materially changed yet: Hyatt Gold Passport has a running promotion to join Clear free for a year. I don't remember if it's targetted. I'll try to find the link, but for those intrested, there's a thread about it on the Gold Passport board.
I have no problems with Clear. I am also ok with the Hybrid/CNG Car Pool lane use.
For those of us who have paid, it clearly is worth the $$ spent. I can arrive at the airport in SJC 30 mins before my flight and still make it. This is because they put you at the very start of the line, only 1 person or so in front of you.
Of course, if too many people start using this service, it *might* backup. But for now, Thank you CLEAR for going to OAK!
Article in the Washington Post states that Clear has contracted with the folks that run DCA and IAD. There is a guaranteed payment from Clear to the Airport Authority in excess of $500,000 per year.
By the time they pay that, plus the screening fees, plus the people to run the lines, they've got to have a LOT of people signed up. And the only real way to do that is to make the other lines unbearable. The airport authority now has a vested interest in eliminating elite lines and slowing down performance of the main lines to make people want to go with Clear.
