May 5, 2025
(Providence Journal)
–
WARWICK –
Rhode Island T.F. Green International Airport
has scrapped a plan to hire a private company to screen passengers at security checkpoints after it said that delays in lines have gotten better.
Airport officials raised concerns about growing lines at airport checkpoints in October, at a monthly meeting of the
Rhode Island Airport Corporation
's board. At that meting, the corporation, the state agency that runs Green and five other, smaller state-owned airports, decided to hire a consultant to study the checkpoints.
An inspection found that lines of passengers waiting for screening in November had backed up outside of the terminal, according to a news release from the airport. On
Friday, May 2
, with more passengers using the airport than during the November inspection, the lines were "nonexistent," according to the airport. It credited improved screening performance by the
Transportation Security Administration
.
In late April, airport spokesman
Bill Fischer
told The
Providence Journal
that the airport corporation was considering joining a
TSA
program that allows airports to hire private companies to conduct passenger screenings, under
TSA
oversight. After the Friday inspection, the corporation announced that it had "decided to rescind its application to enroll in the TSA’s Screening Partnership Program," according to the news release.
The proposal had drawn criticism from
Rhode Island
elected officials, including
U.S.
Sen.
Jack Reed
and
R.I. Rep
.
Megan Cotter
.
This article originally appeared on The
Providence Journal
: TF Green drops plan to privatize passenger security screenings
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