New procedures and programs have altered the airport security process as we know it. This is what you need to know to get through the lines more quickly.

By Julie Moline

What’s the biggest issue facing business travelers these days? It’s not stress, jet lag or fear (of flying or of terrorists). According to a recent poll, what irks fliers most is the long wait in airport security lines.

The “Business Travel Barometer,” a survey conducted by travel management firm Carlson Wagonlit Travel, found that those sluggish lines have a more negative impact on the hearts and minds of road warriors than safety concerns, flight delays, lackluster customer service or corporate travel policy restrictions. (The survey, released in January, sampled opinions of 1,200 business travelers and 300 travel managers in the United States and Canada.)

The long wait at checkpoints isn’t the only thing about airport security drawing complaints from travelers. Last September, pat-downs were added to federal security screeners’ duties—a policy change triggered by the downing of two Russian jetliners by female suicide bombers who had hidden explosives under their garments. But the pat-downs quickly became problematic. After several well-publicized incidents in which women complained of being groped by male staffers in full view of everyone in security areas, the Transportation Security Administration, which oversees airport security, revised its procedures in December. Now, patting down women’s chests will be standard procedure only if a handheld metal detector sounds an alarm or, as the TSA puts it, if there is an “irregularity or anomaly in the person’s clothing outline.” Otherwise, screeners will pat down an imaginary line beginning just below the sternum to the waist, followed by a pat-down of the individual’s back. Furthermore, the TSA mandates that screeners use only the back of the hand when screening sensitive body areas, including breasts (female only), genitals and buttocks. Screeners are also required to explain what they’re about to do before they begin any physical contact. And if any additional screening is deemed necessary, it will only be conducted by screeners of the same gender as the passengers in question.

Another way the TSA is working on the long-line issue is to expand the registered traveler program. Now being tested in five cities—Boston, Houston, Los Angeles, Minneapolis and Washington, DC (Ronald Reagan National Airport)—the program allows travelers who fly at least once a week and who pass a government background check to receive a card that grants them access to a special—and uncrowded—security lane. According to Mark Hatfield of the TSA, the program, which started in July 2004, has proved to be so popular that the agency is planning to expand it in the United States. For now, he said, the program will be running indefinitely. For details, visit www.tsa.gov/interweb/assetlibrary/factsheet.pdf.

In mid-January, Tom Ridge, then secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, announced that another program involving biometrics was being added in the United States, this time to attack long lines at customs. This new program allows travelers to register for a smart card that stores an iris scan along with passport details. When a cardholder enters the country through New York’s Kennedy Airport, for example, he or she skips the line at passport control, inserts the card into a kiosk and, if the scan on the card matches his or her eye, is allowed straight through. For now, the program is free; a similar program in the Netherlands costs roughly $130 per year.

In the meantime, you can get a rough idea of how long you may be waiting at checkpoints in domestic airports before you get anywhere near them—a new feature on the TSA website lists estimated wait times. Because the figures are based on monthly averages, your actual wait time may vary, depending on, among other things, the weather and the day of the week. For information, visit http://waittime.tsa.dhs.gov.

Julie Moline is a freelance writer, editor and editorial consultant in New York City. She is also the North American correspondent for Business Travel World.