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San Jose's business travelers take advantage of new security program

By Eli Segall

The West Coast unveiling of a new product that eliminates airport security lines has gained increasing popularity in San Jose since it launched in January at Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport.

Roughly 3,000 San Jose airport users have purchased the Clear Registered Traveler card. For $100 per year, passengers undergo a fingerprint check or eye-scan at a Clear kiosk in lieu of the traditional security line. Pending approval by the Transportation Security Administration, machines built and designed by GE and Lockheed will also sniff passengers for bomb powder residue, scan for metal objects and even scan shoes for weapons or explosives.

Airport spokesman Rich Dressler said San Jose's airport has the fastest-growing Clear customer base of any of the five airports that have it.

"The greatest benefit is predictability," Dressler said. "Lines don't matter."

In San Jose, Clear customers go from the curbside drop-off to the plane's boarding area in 12 minutes , said Verified Identity president and CEO Steven Brill. There are two kiosks at Terminal C and one at Terminal A.

Jay Thede, a recent business traveler to San Jose, joined the club during a layover last week, when the Omaha, Neb., native purchased Clear at the airport's Terminal C kiosk.

"This will let me schedule a real efficient use of my time," said Thede, who works for a shipping and logistics company and travels on business two to three times per month. "With airport lines you're talking about the unknown, but this can get you through in an 'x' amount of time."

Passengers haven't been the only ones to benefit from the new program. Because Mineta was one of the original four airports to rent space to Clear, the airport is a participant in a revenue-sharing program. SJC receives 11 percent of revenues from Clear purchases at the airport and approximately 1 percent of membership revenues nationwide, Brill said.

Clear is owned and operated by New York-based Verified Identity Pass Inc. The system is based on EZ-Pass, a plastic card that lets drivers in the Northeast forego backlogged highway toll lanes for near-empty lanes that electronically deduct money from the card, which is placed on the driver's front windshield.

"If you move enough of the traffic away, you make everyone faster," said Verified Identity spokeswoman Cindy Rosenthal. "You speed up the regular guys, too."

Clear was first installed as a pilot program at Orlando International Airport in summer 2005. In the past two months, four other airports have signed on, but Orlando is still the main hub: 30,000 of Clear's 40,000 customers nationwide purchased the card at the Florida airport, Rosenthal said.

The $100 signup fee includes $28 earmarked for the TSA so it may conduct a "threat assessment" check of potential customers, Clear officials said. No other criminal background checks are performed.

In addition to San Jose and Orlando, Clear also operates out of Cincinnati, Indianapolis and New York JFK International Airports. To learn more, call 866.848.2415 or visit flyclear.com.