U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) called on Monday for an immediate surge in canine inspection units at the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to help speed up long security lines at New York City airports.
“As the dog days of summer roll on in, airport security lines need to roll along, too. But right now passengers are jammed in outrageously long delays. One simple, cheap and very effective way to speed up the long lines is by deploying a surge of highly-trained passenger-screening canines,” Schumer said. “As New York City airport wait times bog down, so waits the nation. New York City is a national hub and if we can reduce the wait times here, we can make the entire country move a lot faster. A canine screening surge in New York City could really take a bite out of time.”
Schumer said that the surge in canine units needed to be coupled with an additional surge in TSA agents to accurately and efficiently screen passengers standing in stalled security lines.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey recently reported that the average maximum wait time at JFK International Airport between March 15 and April 15 increased by 82 percent from the same period the previous year. Schumer said that if nothing were to be done, the lines could continue to grow even longer.