Travelers hoping to ease the pain of navigating long security lines at San Diego International Airport will now get a little help with the addition of a new location in Terminal 2 where they can enroll in TSA’s PreCheck program that allows you to keep your shoes on and your laptops in their bags.
San Diego is now one of 13 airports across the country that will have a designated area where airline engers can sign up and pay for TSA PreCheck, with the help of someone from CLEAR, a company that uses biometric authentication to s’ identities at airports, stadiums and other venues.
While hip in the TSA PreCheck program can be applied for online, as can renewals, the in-person process comes with a little more hand-holding, a CLEAR spokesperson explained. Applying at the airport, however, does not mean applicants will get their KTN (known traveler number) on the spot. That will likely come in three to five days once they enroll at a CLEAR Plus pod at the airport.
Wednesday’s announcement, CLEAR said, is helpful for “anyone interested in enrolling or renewing their PreCheck hip. For instance, if I’m a enger flying out of San Diego and I want to enroll or renew in TSA PreCheck, I can go to Terminal 2, Level 2 and enroll there with one of CLEAR’s staff on site. Just find a CLEAR staff member on-site and they’ll help sign you up or renew your PreCheck using one of our tech pods.
“It’s very convenient for folks looking to get access to enrollment/renewal services to PreCheck.”
The enrollment location can be found by looking for TSA PreCheck and CLEAR signage. It is open seven days a week from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. The cost for enrolling in the PreCheck program is $77.95, which is good for five years.
According to TSA’s website, enrollment in person should take no longer than 10 minutes and includes fingerprinting, photo capture and payment. An identification document like an unexpired port or permanent resident card is required.
TSA PreCheck’s expedited security program provides dedicated screening lanes for those who have paid the fee. Travelers also do not have to remove shoes, belts or jackets, and travel-size liquids can remain in carry-on bags.
San Diego is also among dozens of U.S. airports that have designated CLEAR lanes to help speed up the identification portion of the security screening process for those who have CLEAR hip. At $189 per year, it is considerably more expensive than the TSA PreCheck program.
The one advantage of a CLEAR hip is that it provides biometric screening to customers’ identities, after which CLEAR ambassadors will escort travelers to the front of the TSA line.
