Security-Checkpoint Wait Times
At Airports Are Going Online


WASHINGTON -- Airline passengers will now have a new guide to help them figure out how early to get to the airport.

The Transportation Security Administration will launch today a new Web site that will provide more detailed, airport-by-airport information on wait times at security checkpoints. The site, http://waittime.tsa.dhs.gov, will provide estimated hourly and daily average-wait times, based on the last month's data, at any given airport.

TSA officials began posting the information on its Internet site several weeks ago, but it was almost impossible to find and difficult to use. The new site is designed to be more customer-friendly, TSA officials said.

"It's certainly more consumer-friendly than the one we have up there already," said Amy von Walter, a TSA spokeswoman.

This information isn't likely to help much during Thanksgiving, Christmas and other peak travel times when passenger traffic spikes to abnormal levels. But it does provide better information on wait times for business or leisure travelers.