Easy pass for airport lines

Thanks to new technology, some Queens travelers will be able to get through the airport lines and onto their flights a bit quicker.
LaGuardia International Airport recently installed a Clear enrollment station, where airline passengers can buy a special ID card to whisk them through security checkpoints. The fast security lanes will launch at the airport in September.
The card works like an ATM card, said Clear spokesperson Cindy Rosenthal.
Travelers insert the card into a machine, then place their finger on a touch screen or allow their eye to be scanned by a mirror.
Either method can be used, “So [the machine] can only match the exact person,” Rosenthal said, but applicants must submit both eye scans and fingerprints upon enrollment.
The Clear card, which costs $99.95 a year, contains the travelers’ encrypted fingerprint or iris scan, and prospective customers can find out more information or pick up a card at the enrollment station in LaGuardia’s Central Terminal every day from 5 a.m. to 8 p.m.
To apply, applicants must first be pre-screened and approved by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), then fill out their forms at www.flyclear.com and complete the process in person at an enrollment location.
“Now nearly all travelers with departing flights from the Central Terminal will be able to access Clear lanes thanks to the leadership of AirTran Airways,” said Steven Brill, Founder and CEO of Clear.
According to the Clear company, more than 1,000 travelers signed up for the service within the first 30 hours after opening in San Francisco.
“LaGuardia is a major business airport and we won’t be surprised to see record enrollment here, too,” Brill said.
So far, more than 59,000 travelers have enrolled nationwide in the service, which can also be used at J.F.K. and Newark International Airports. In addition, an enrollment station is situated at Grand Central Station in Manhattan - within the Grand Central Hyatt’s mezzanine level. Clear cards - and other registered traveler IDs - are accepted at more than 10 airports across the country.