TSA Procedures That Won't Infuriate You: Coming Soon

Could the TSA finally be responding to public outcry over its often-controversial procedures? In his most recent appearance before Congress, TSA chief John Pistole moved away from his typically adamant defense of the agency’s screening process. "I have listened to ideas from people all over this country," he told the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. And now, he says, the TSA may be ready to stop treating every single traveler the same way, and start focusing on fliers it knows the least about.

Specifically, the agency will work to expand several pilot programs currently being tested in select airports throughout the country, the Los Angeles Times reports. In one, passengers who share personal info get to use a separate security lane—while blissfully wearing their shoes and jackets. In another, behavior detection officers look for suspicious activity by talking to passengers in the terminal. Don’t expect revised procedures nationwide for several months—but one policy has already been changed: TSA agents can now decide whether to pat down children under 12 or make them take off their shoes. (More Transportation Security Administration stories.)