Airports have seen a steady increase in travelers over the last few months, and the Transportation Security Administration expects this Memorial Day weekend to be their busiest in a while.
In April of last year, air travel hit a record low. TSA screened a total of 87,000 people nationwide on April 14, 2020.
"On an averge day, pre-pandemic at JFK International Airport, they would have screen about 100,000 people," the TSA's Lisa Farbstein told NewsRadio KDKA. "So it really, really took a dive."
Farbstein says the TSA now is screening about 1.5 million people a day, still down significantly from 2.5 million people in 2019, but they're preparing for another surge this summer.
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While travel numbers are picking up, there are several new security protocols in place.
For instance, Farbstein says you'll no longer hand your ID off to the agent at security.
"We're asking passengers to place their own ID in the reader - into the Credential Authentication Technology reader." She said the read is "smart enough to know that you're ticketed to fly out of that airport on that day."
Agents will sit behind shields and wear masks and gloves. They're required to change their gloves every time that pat someone down or search a bag.
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Farbstein also says the lines will look a little longer as they will have social distancing in place and it might be wise to get the airport a little early as getting to your flight will take just a little longer.