If you are a frequent flyer, put the trays back after you finished security screening
 

Whenever I go through security screenings, around 90% of passengers don't collect the trays and just leave it there, blocking others from getting back their stuffs.
And no, its not just a general stupidity issue, or a problem of low-educated people. Many bizclass flyer, frequent flyers with bragtags on their hand luggage also leave their trays behind.
Any real frequent flyer shall know that if you put your damn tray back where it belongs, it speeds up security. And still, most of the flyers don't do it.
Last time, when I saw a guy (around my age range, I didn't want to be unpolite with older folks), who left his tray there, I just kindly asked him: "excuse me sir, is this your first time ever flying?"
(it was a priority lane for business class and status passengers, so obviously he was flying regurarly)
So he replied with pride and confidence: "Ehh, no, I fly intercontinental at least twice a month"
I replied "Then why do you leave your trays behind, slowing down security screenings?"
He got the point, smiled at me, and collected his trays.
Let me know if I was an ....... here, the whole conversation had some humour within it, I also was quite silent, so I didn't humiliate him in front of other passengers.

It really drives me crazy that at many airports the bottleneck is actually the lack of tray-collecting. If everyone would do it, time could be reduced by 10-15%.

What do you guys think?

Shouldn't that be the job of some of the TSA? Their nickname of "Thousands Standing Around" came from the fact that there always seem to be a bunch of TSA just literally standing there, and if anyone needs "re-education" perhaps it should be them, such that if they see trays stacking up the idle ones can do re-collection duty.

I'm with the OP. I agree that when otherwise idle a TSO could, should, be doing it, but since they aren't very much, it's a pretty simple thing to do to speed things up. Though, ime, in the Pre lines it's not a been major problem.

... come to think of it, same here.

I myself often don't even use a bin on Pre, just one those little bowls, for the wallet and keys, etc. Carry-on and briefcase go directly on the belt. I see lot of people doing the same in Pre, so maybe there's just less bin use ime.
But, still, the original point of this thread is valid. You should stack your bin after you use it.

If one is a frequent flyer, one should be in the pre-check line, and to be honest there should not be bins, bowls, or bozos in the line. Empty yer pockets and put your trinkets in your carryon not a bowl. Nothing comes out or is taken off so what does one need a bin for their coat? Just put it on top of your carry on.

Now what is funny are the airports where everything goes into a bin regardless. I think it is funny when I put my bag directly on the belt and they immediately get bent out of shape grab my bag and put a bin under it.

In some non-US security lines, passengers have to put everything in a bin, and use multiple bins if more than one item. I've had to use as many as four bins, but there was efficiency in staff collecting them.

Don't think the OP said this was necessarily in the US, so pre - check may not be an option.

As to the people saying there should be a person whose job it is to put your bin away, seriously?! Just pick up the bin and put it at the end, it is literally the easiest thing to do. This type of behaviour always makes me angry in the security line.

I don't see this as a problem and believe a 10-15 percent reduction in time is wildly over-inflated. Once I'm done with the tray it stays where it stops. I'm not going to linger to stack them.

Should a fellow passenger self-appoint themselves tray monitor and rebuke me for my conduct they can anticipate being ignored entirely or on the receiving end of a response that is short, sharp and quite possibly profane. :)

Yeah, except that everything goes into a bin when you've got the automated lines including Pre-Check in Terminal C at EWR.

In my experience, it can be confusing as it's airport dependent. At some, the screeners will collect and stack the trays whereas at others they just look on while the trays pile up. Sometimes they'll only clear the trays once the belt has stopped due to too many left on there. I typically remove my trays as it takes a few seconds but do see others often leave them. However, I think it's just people not paying attention, not being intentionally rude.

And I fly out of ATL where in the Pre line everything has to go in a tray so there is always a pile of empty trays at the end where people did not remove and stack.

Trays are a rare luxury at most Pre-check lines and I am not about to stack them up for two reasons. #1 I've personally witnessed a situation where a passenger put their bin on top of another one, only problem was that the other passenger didn't see that happen and started looking for their now buried cellphone which they expected to see in the top bin. This started a long charade of mutterings about a stolen phone and TSA goons running around trying to find it.... It was solved eventually. #2 it's not my job! Seriously, we need to give Tub Stacking Agents something to do, I mean, there are Thousands of them Standing Around looking furtive.

Should people stack their bins yes, was it OP's place to correct/scold another passenger no IMO. Either stack the ones there to be helpful or stack yours and move along. Most frequent fliers spend way too much time and energy being offended by other people or feeling they have the right or responsiblity to school strangers.

Since my real reply was covered (Get TSA Precheck and skip the bins), I will add a snarky comment:

Leave the busy-work for the TSA, there are agents standing around waiting to molest passengers and they can move bins in the interim.

Precheck lanes have bins? I've never seen it and I've been yelled at for taking a bin from the other lane to use for my coat.

At some checkpoints, the bin thing actually makes sense - it keeps dangling pack straps from getting caught in the rollers (if any). For a screener, it's probably easier to just put all packs in bins than to check to see if there are dangling straps. That same screener will (or should) be eyeing the pax-loaded bins as they go through to make sure there's nothing to dangle and snag in the rollers.

When I do need to use a bin I will restack. But I can see how other pax, with hands full of reclaimed phones, jewelry, backpacks, etc. and wanting to clear the post-scan scrum area as quickly as possible might not be able to be so helpful.

Okay, you object to the use of key and watch bowls in Pre.
But when you use a bin, do you restack it?

The OP is based in BUD (Hungary). There is no TSA or PreCheck there.

Far often than not there is a PAX at the end of the output line recomposing themselves so it is not always the easiest thing to do because they are blocking were bins should go.

In those cases there needs to be a continuous feed of bins that require no human interaction.

As someone who travels with a pack I make sure the straps are out of the way as possible so not to get caught. However, IME when a screener places my pack in a bin they rarely pay any attention to the straps.

When airports where two bins are needed I stack what I used but sometimes it is not possible to do more than that - see my first response.

Not my job.
Also, typically there seems to be plenty of staff around to do this.

Lets get real. Restacking the bins? After being selected for secondary screening, striping half my clothes off, receiving a standing full body massage, and then having my carryon rescreened (twice). If it offends the nice tsa person I'm all for it.

It's not my job to stack bins, so I leave them where they are when I get my items out of them.

1. Be ready for security.
2. Put all your stuff in the bins that might set off the buzzer.
3. Move through quickly.
4. Grab your stuff and go.
5. Leaving the bins is fine and widely accepted around the world.
6. If some self-righteous #@#@@%$ person says "excuse me sir, is this your first time ever flying?", laugh and walk away.

:rolleyes:

I'm seeing increased security line automation, with a new belt system which moves the used trays back under the in use trays, and then pops them up for loading. There signs saying to not stack the trays at the end, as there is an auto-loader that I guess looks into the first tray into the recycle bin and will stop if there is something in it. In fact I've heard TSA barkers getting quite annoyed when people stacked their own trays. Otherwise, I'm generally with the OP, just out of courtesy to my fellow pax.

I can rarely get them to give me a bin, or even a little bowl, in pre. They are really big on this whole "your bag is your bin" idea. Extremely annoying since I often only have a clamshell where you have to open the whole thing to get anything in or out. A bowl would be an order of magnitude faster. It's clearly not to speed anything up; I think they are just too lazy to pick up the empty bowls on the other end.

TSA whining
 

I pay for the TSA each and every time I go through a checkpoint. (2 -3 times a week) I don't consider hauling bins around to be my role. TSA can appoint a bin stacker or install a truly automated system that moves the bins back to the other side.

I generally do collect my and other empty trays, but...
 

That's more polite than my likely response.

In life, there are two types of people. Those with friends. And those that tell demand what others do with security trays. :rolleyes:

:D:D :D :D :D

It's easier to leave it there and move on which is what I have and will continue to do.

There are many types of people including officious busybodies who attempt to use moral suasion or public ridicule to impose their desired order of things on those who are not interested.

Should my handling of the bins offend some imperious twit they can either fume in silence or bring their concerns to my attention. Depending on the day choosing the second option may not be an entirely pleasant experience for them.

Moderator's Note: Personal Exchanges
 

Folks,

Please discuss the topic, NOT each other.
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TWA884
Travel Safety/Security co-moderator

One other thing to consider... the basic premise is flawed.

I have never seen a delay/line AFTER screening of anything more than a few seconds. Even then it is just because screening is moving things along and several bins are coming out quickly.

If there is a delay pre-screening, it is because security has not moved the mound of bins waiting to be moved. And no amount of passenger stacking of bins will change that.

So the idea of stacking/not stacking having a material effect on wait lines seems false.

It's more a matter of courtesy than efficiency. I'm Pre, but in the regular lines I've often had to stack abandoned bins myself to get at my bin that's still in the machine shrouding unable to roll down.

What is the courtesy? Clogging the line by staying there longer than necessary? You cannot get to your bag if someone is standing there. If I get out of your way, you can stack bins (a rarity) if needed to get to your bag. If flyers get out of the way, you can do what you need to do.

And you did change what OP said to start...

"It really drives me crazy that at many airports the bottleneck is actually the lack of tray-collecting. If everyone would do it, time could be reduced by 10-15%."

This premise is complete and utter nonsense.

The problem with this is that in some airports, particularly the UK, they now make people line up behind each unpacking "station", so if you are behind a slow guy you can't even move to the next empty one (as someone else is already lining up for it)

I travel with two carry-ons: a 20" roller, and a belt/shoulder bag.

The roller goes onto the belt directly; it doesn't fit in a TSA bin anyway, so nobody has ever put it in one.

The small bag goes into a bin, along with my shoes and belt.

My laptop and tablet go into a second bin.

At some airports, TSA will require that the laptop and tablet each get a bin of their very own (ridiculous, as they can both easily fit in a single bin without overlapping in any way), so that increases my item total to four - bag plus three bins.

While collecting my crap at the end of the c/p (and simultaneously trying to prevent my pants from falling down around my ankles and avoiding stubbing toes in my sock-clad feet), I will stack my 2-3 bins, along with any other empties that are clogging the line, in order to allow my stuff to advance to the point I can reach it. I don't put the bins away, but I stack them to get the clutter out of my way, rather than leaving them strewn about randomly. I don't feel like I'm "doing TSA's job", I'm just clearing debris from my own path and trying to be courteous to those behind me.

I don't make snarky comments to strangers in public places when they do annoying things. Such will only increase the risk that said strangers may take offense and become belligerent or even violent.

However, I do wish people would stack their bins a little more. Not necessarily put them back in a neat pile on the cart at the end of the belt, but if they'd just stack the two or three they use for their own stuff to keep the line moving, it would help me to find all of my own items and get me out of the way of the people behind me.

I think 10-15% is a gross exaggeration of the effect of non-stacked bins. I think the greater delay is caused by people putting themselves and their belongings back together while standing at the belt, rather than grabbing their belonging and re-assembling themselves at the benches and chairs provided past the end of the line.

Humble suggestion: Those dog bowls are a ripe opportunity for not only pilferage, but accidental loss - they can be knocked over and flipped much easier than the large bins, sending your items flying off to Oz. I recommend that you simply empty your pockets into your carry-on before entering the security line, which reduces the overall number of items you need to track as you transit the checkpoint, and keeps your important items (such as wallet and keys) more secure.

*utter