Yes, you did wait a long time at MSP checkpoints

If you boarded a plane at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport in February and felt that it took longer than normal to get through security checkpoints, you were right.

Officials at MSP track wait times at security checkpoints and report hourly to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). From Feb. 2 to March 2, when the busy spring break season got underway and about 40,000 passengers were screened each day — that's 25 percent more than at other times during the year — wait times at MSP exceeded 20 minutes more than 222 times, according to data obtained by the Star Tribune through a Freedom of Information Act request.

In comparison, wait times never exceeded 20 minutes during the same period in 2015. The longest wait time last year was 19 minutes, according to the data.

In the middle of February, the TSA consolidated the airport's seven screening checkpoints into two. The move was designed to speed up the security process and make it more efficient. But the opening of the new $17 million North checkpoint on Feb. 17 instead sent long lines caused by staffing issues into even longer and more frequent waits.

Before the north checkpoint opened, wait times reached 20 minutes or longer 85 times. After it opened, there were 137 occurrences of waits of 20 minutes or more, including 22 times when waits were 30 minutes or greater.

Lines routinely spilled beyond the queuing area and stretched halfway across the terminal, rankling passengers. After consolidation, the airport still had 17 lanes to screen passengers, but not all of them were used during peak periods because TSA had an inadequate number of staff on duty.

Delays were most common at the south checkpoint where waits exceeded 20 minutes 104 times. Waits of 20 minutes or more occurred at the north checkpoint 47 times and 25 times at the former Checkpoint 2, which remained open for part of February until the new North checkpoint was fully operational. In Terminal 2, Checkpoint 1 saw waits of 20 minutes or greater 21 times while that occurred 14 times at Checkpoint 2.

The situation grew so maddening that even Metropolitan Airports Commission (MAC) officials called the situation "chaotic" and unacceptable, and pressed the TSA to take action. Minnesota's congressional leaders also got into the act demanding action. Their calls led to a visit from TSA Administrator Peter Neffenger, who in March promised to fix things.

The TSA responded by using overtime to get additional screeners on the job during peak periods and opening additional lanes to handle the passenger volume. It also deployed teams of canine drug and bomb sniffing dogs to expedite the screen process. TSA also encouraged frequent travelers to enroll in PreCheck to ease crowding in the general boarding lanes.

But that all came too late for February travelers trying to escape winter.

During February, passengers were more likely to face lengthy delays in the morning, with wait times exceeding 20 minutes 140 times between 6 a.m. and noon. Wait times of 20 minutes or more were reported 82 times between 1 and 8 p.m.

Wait times exceeding 20 minutes were most common at 6 a.m., which had 40 occurrences, followed by 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. with 35 occurences during the one month of data analyzed.

Between Memorial Day and the end of July, the average wait time at the two checkpoints in Terminal 1 has been about 8 minutes, TSA's Federal Security Director at MSP Cliff Van Leuven told the MAC's Management and Operations Committee last week.

Passenger traffic is up 8 percent during that two-month period ending July 31 compared to last year, airport figures show.

MSP is operating with its maximum allotment of screeners, the equivalent of 629 full-time positions. Queuing lines have been streamlined and both Delta Air Lines and the MAC have provided additional staffing to direct passengers and help with non-screening duties, thus freeing up TSA personnel to be on the lines.

All that has helped make the summer a smoother experience for travelers.

"The North checkpoint has settled into everything that I had hoped it would be after we got through that difficult transition of trying to move into a new home in the midst of spring break," Van Leuven said this week. "Spring break is our busiest time of the year, so we are doing really well at Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 this summer."