Buyers Not Yet Sold On Reg. Traveler

Many corporate travel buyers still are awaiting additional benefits to be included in the Registered Traveler program and further penetration at U.S. airports before they would consider adopting it on behalf of their travelers.

So far the program has been rolled out to only a handful of airports, and such technologies that would allow travelers to move through checkpoints without removing their shoes, laptops or coats remain to be approved. Yet, large U.S. airports are in the midst of initiating programs as new screening technologies are being developed with the aim of moving Registered Traveler beyond merely a front-of-the-line program.

Although vendors said several corporations have embraced the Registered Traveler—purchasing memberships for their travelers and hosting onsite enrollments—a recent BCD client benchmark survey of 219 travel executives found that only 3 percent reimburse travelers for membership.

Transportation Security Administration assistant secretary Kip Hawley told BTN that providers must continue to innovate technology and processes to make the program viable. "I don't think they're intended to build a business where people pay $100 and then cut to the front of the line. It's got to be more than that. In order for that to happen, we either have to get a more vigorous background check—which they've declined to do—or add more technology to the mix to allow us not to pull off coats, shoes and laptops."

Of 211 corporate travel manager and traveler respondents to a survey sponsored by the Business Travel Coalition and Registered Traveler supplier FLO Alliance, 80 percent said they would pay $99 for a membership—the going base rate among suppliers—that guarantees "expeditious security checkpoint processing, without any other in-lane benefits such as not having to remove shoes, laptops and coats."

Fifty-five percent of survey respondents said keeping shoes on through security would be the is the single most desired attribute, while 42 percent said leaving laptops in bags while passing through checkpoints would be.

Many respondents, however, qualified their responses, saying program desirability hinges upon which airports roll it out, whether companies would reimburse the expense and whether programs truly deliver on promises of speedy flow through airport security. One Corporate Travel 100 travel buyer told BTN, "I just haven't seen it take off yet."

Barclays is among those companies that have adopted the Registered Traveler program on behalf of frequent travelers. Through an agreement with Clear and JFK lane sponsor British Airways, the company offers reimbursement for membership to travelers making three or more trips per year between New York and London.

However, one travel manager respondent said, "This is going to be very hard to justify when companies have 500 travelers," noting it could add an additional $50,000 annually to the travel budget. Another said, "Our company plans to only pay for this benefit for those travelers who take over 15 trips per year or hold an executive position within the company."

Hawley this summer during congressional testimony said technologies being developed by such companies as General Electric that would enable Registered Traveler program members to pass through security without removing their shoes, coats and laptops still need further work before TSA will grant approval.

"The technology is not yet there to provide significant screening benefits to members," Hawley said before the House Committee on Homeland Security this summer.

Hawley told BTN, "We really applaud GE for wanting to come forward with new equipment and improve security. Unfortunately, there was all this hype, and the expectation was that the shoe scanner worked. They put me on the spot to say that it didn't work yet, and that was interpreted as being negative on it. It's back in the labs now. As we speak, they're doing explosive testing on it. If it is successful at meeting the requirements, we'll welcome it at as many places as people want to put it. We are looking at other technologies that we're confident work that we would then be able to deploy ourselves as well."

Allison Beer, senior vice president for corporate development for Registered Traveler supplier Verified Identity Pass' Clear offering, said Clear is committed to shoe scanners and other technologies, but more immediate, she said, are any process improvements that move members through the lane quicker. For example, Clear has put in place a "concierge" service to help members load and unload bins as they move through checkpoints, shaving time off the process.

Clear is positioned as the dominant player in the Registered Traveler space—operating all but two of the currently implemented screening lanes. It has launched lanes at airports in Albany, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Little Rock, Newark, New York, Orlando, San Jose and Westchester, N.Y., and recently announced a partnership with AirTran Airways, its first U.S.-based airline, to launch checkpoints at New York LaGuardia's Central Terminal. San Francisco International Airport also selected Clear, and last month began enrolling members at the airport.

Competitor Unisys Corp. in June launched its first Registered Traveler lanes at Reno-Tahoe International Airport—becoming the first competitor to Verified Identity Pass to launch lanes.

Meanwhile, FLO Alliance has an agreement to launch lanes at Huntsville, Ala., International Airport. Vigilant Solutions, which operates a separate program in Jacksonville, said it has "been approved by the TSA as a national interoperable enrollment provider." (See note below.)

At the same time, FLO and Unisys have entered into a "teaming agreement," through which the two companies are bidding together and dividing operational and marketing duties, with Unisys focusing on the former and FLO on the latter. Unisys Registered Traveler program director Bryan Ichikawa said the two companies have "bid on the last couple of airports together."

He noted that Reno/Tahoe International Airport is up and running, with its smart card and those issued by Clear achieving interoperability standards through checkpoints. Ichikawa said there is growing interest among airports, which don't have to invest cash into the program and can gain revenue through partnerships with providers.

Ichikawa conceded that the program has not met critical mass, but sid expected bids from large airports should spur more companies to embrace the program.

Editor's note: This version of this story clarifies Vigilant Solutions' interoperability status.