{"id":29598,"date":"2021-11-16T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-11-16T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ourpublicservice.org\/airport-security-screening-and-passenger-support-services\/"},"modified":"2022-11-15T10:28:25","modified_gmt":"2022-11-15T15:28:25","slug":"airport-security-screening-and-passenger-support-services","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/ourpublicservice.org\/our-solutions\/customer-experience\/y2021\/airport-security-screening-and-passenger-support-services\/","title":{"rendered":"Airport Security Screening and Passenger Support Services"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n<\/i>Back to Customer Experience Profiles<\/span><\/a>\n\n\n\n
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Transportation Security Administration, Department of Homeland Security<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Executive Summary<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data Highlights<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/a>Customer Experience Insights<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/a>Delivering Services Equitably<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leading Customer Experience Practices<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Every year, the Transportation Security Administration interacts with millions of travelers passing through airports and other transportation hubs. Even with the slowdown in travel caused by the coronavirus pandemic, in fiscal year 2020 the TSA screened more than 450 million travelers.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Customers appreciate the general travel information and answers to their questions that TSA provides over social media using its #AskTSA accounts. Customer satisfaction with the agency\u2019s website has also increased in recent years. The agency has improved the clarity of information on the site, although many customers still call the agency\u2019s contact center to confirm information. Despite TSA\u2019s ongoing outreach and communication initiatives, some customers are still confused by aspects of the TSA screening process, an issue we also noted last year. In fiscal year 2020, TSA\u2019s customer service branch worked to provide TSA officers with training to help address this customer concern.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Service Overview<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Primary\u202fcustomers<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Passengers of many modes of transportation within the United States, with air travelers making up the majority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key services related to security screening and passenger support (all data for fiscal year 2020)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  • Security screenings at U.S. airports.\n
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    • 453.6 million<\/strong> passengers and crew members screened. (Down from 813.3 million in 2019 due to COVID-19)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Information about policies and procedures for traveling and preparing for checkpoint screenings.\u202f<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Enrollment and application processing for TSA PreCheck\u2122\n
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      • 1,178,488<\/strong> new enrollments.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • 776,844<\/strong> renewals.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Assistance during the security screening process\u2014through the TSA Cares program\u2014 for passengers with disabilities, medical conditions or other special circumstances.\n
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        • 15,328 requests<\/strong> for assistance.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • Clarification related to watchlist names to prevent confusion about and misidentification of travelers through the Department of Homeland Security Traveler Redress Inquiry Program.\n
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          • 11,739 applications<\/strong> reviewed.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

            Service Snapshot (data for fiscal year 2020)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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            • 966,570 calls <\/strong>to TSA\u2019s customer service line.\n
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              • Average wait time: 12 seconds<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n
              • 81,387 emails<\/strong> received by the contact center.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
              • Over 44 million<\/strong> visits to TSA.gov.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
              • 672,645 queries<\/strong> received by the AskTSA team.\n
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                • Average wait time to receive an answer from AskTSA: 2 minutes<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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                  Data Highlights<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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                  of customers were \u201cvery satisfied\u201d with #AskTSA social media accounts in fiscal year 2020.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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                  of passengers surveyed\u202fin 2019 said\u202fthat\u202fTSA officers did not clearly explain the reasons for additional screening.\u202f<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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                  Customer Experience Insights<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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                  Improvement from last year<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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                  Room for improvement<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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                  People appreciate answers to their questions and general travel guidance from TSA on social media. <\/div>\r\n\t\t\t
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                  TSA uses multiple social media platforms to share information with customers about screening procedures and to respond to travelers\u2019 inquiries. In addition to responding to individual questions, the agency aggregates the questions and comments received over social media to identify trends and themes. This analysis helps the agency decide what kind of information to proactively post to ensure customer questions are being addressed. TSA also uses this analysis to update the agency\u2019s website based on common customer questions and needs.<\/p>\n

                  For example, the agency noticed that many of the questions asked on social media in 2020 were about very basic travel procedures and were likely coming from people who had not traveled for a long time and were therefore unfamiliar with TSA processes. Based on this trend, the agency developed a social media campaign for new travelers focusing on the most basic information so that people who had little familiarity with TSA could understand what to expect when they got to an airport.<\/p>\n

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                  • Customer satisfaction rate for AskTSA social media accounts in fiscal year 2020: 95% \u201cvery satisfied.\u201d<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

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                    Engaging customers with social media <\/strong><\/p>\n

                    With 95% of customers in fiscal 2020 \u201cvery satisfied,\u201d TSA\u2019s social media accounts are some of the highest rated in government. Agency officials noted that the goal is to \u201cmeet customers where they are,\u201d and convey the information that TSA wants to share\u2014such as reminders about items prohibited from air travel\u2014in a way that is relatable and engaging. For example, the agency often shares pictures of prohibited items found during screenings with captions that include jokes or reference other social media trends. TSA social media accounts have above average engagement rates, indicating that customers are interested in the content, and agency officials note that this engagement benefits the agency\u2019s mission. Field staff have reported that fewer prohibited items have been found in baggage since AskTSA began sharing these photos.<\/p>\n

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                    <\/i><\/span> Some travelers would like clearer communication from TSA officers about aspects of the screening process. <\/div>\r\n\t\t\t
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                    TSA may select travelers for additional screening for a variety of reasons; for example, random selection by the screening technology or they have the same name as someone on a list of known or suspected terrorists. When passengers are selected for additional screening, officers provide an overview of the general purpose of additional screening and what the process will entail. However, travelers do not always understand this overview and can become confused or frustrated that officers have not effectively explained the additional screening process.<\/p>\n

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                    • 21% of passengers stated that TSA officers did not clearly explain the reasons for additional screening, according to a 2019 TSA survey.1<\/sup> (TSA was not able to conduct this survey in 2020 due to the pandemic.)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                      In 2020, TSA took advantage of the slowdown in travel caused by the pandemic to conduct additional training sessions for officers on how to communicate with customers during the screening process. These training sessions emphasized the importance of using plain language, rather than TSA acronyms or technical terms, when explaining the screening process to customers. Beyond conducting these training sessions for current officers, the agency\u2019s customer service branch also partnered with TSA\u2019s Training and Development Office to ensure these plain language principles were included in the training all new officers receive.<\/p>\n

                      Due to the pandemic, TSA has not yet been able to survey customers to measure whether these training sessions have improved communication and decreased confusion about additional screening, but it plans to do so in the future.<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t<\/div>\r\n\t

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                      Customer satisfaction with content on TSA.gov has improved since 2016,2<\/sup> but many customers still call to confirm information with the TSA contact center. <\/div>\r\n\t\t\t
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