During the longest government shutdown in history, crowded social media feeds strobe with stories regarding the potential impact on travel. Whispers of "TSA employees calling in sick," "airport terminals closing," and "longer than normal security lines" are causing a lot of uncertainty among those with upcoming travel plans.
But is this really the case?
Although the rate of employees being absent from work has increased measurably from last year, TSA has issued multiple press releases saying that the average wait times are less than 30 minutes. Ninety percent of passengers are actually waiting fewer than 15 minutes to go through security at airports all over the nation. The redirection of passengers to different terminals certainly seems to be an effective method of handling an understaffed airport.
Zane Kerby, the President and CEO of the
American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) has even stated "the immediate impact to our industry is limited."
Government funded museums and parks are closed for the time being, but for most travel destinations it is business as usual! As for getting there, arriving a little early never hurts. Although the averages remain low, just as with high travel times, every airport is different.
