Last week, I flew out to Chicago from New York for my brother’s graduation. This was the first time in four years that my entire family would be together, so I wanted to maximize my time during this weekend trip.
But once I set foot inside Chicago’s O’Hare International, I knew my careful planning had gone out the window. From the security checkpoint, the line snaked through the airport and out the door. I joined the ranks of travelers who were anxious about the sluggish pace of the lines.
To take my mind off the tense environment (I saw a grandfather nearly pass out and a pregnant woman go ballistic), I called my boyfriend, Andy, who comforted me and let me know that distressed passengers were hashtagging the situation on Twitter as #IHateTheWait.
Getting through security after waiting for two hours, I sprinted to my terminal. The gate had closed two minutes before. Two other passengers and I were stuck there as our plane departed without us.
That’s when I thought of a great question to ask WeWork members: What innovative solutions are out there that could make the wait times more bearable and passengers less frustrated? Here are some ideas they came up with:
Security robots
What if you didn’t have to wait for a person to check you in at the security line? That job could be handled by a robot who would ask your name, scan your items, and answer any questions you had about your flight, including which gate you’ll be departing from.
After that, you’d pass along to a TSA agent who would take your photo and record your voice.
“This information would get matched with what the bot has about you in terms of voice, facial features, number of carry ons, and their color, texture, pattern, and dimensions,” says Raz Choudhury, the founder of the online sales and marketing platform Office Interactive. “If all checks out, the gate opens and off you go.”
Choudhury says the process would take just a few seconds per person, speeding up the lines significantly.
“If there is a problem, another bot would come to you and escort you to a manned desk for a manual process,” says Choudhury, a WeWork Chelsea member.
Tracking traffic in the terminal
Most airports have several security checkpoints leading to the departure gates. If technology could predict the wait times at each, passengers could find their way to the shortest security lines.
Andrew Wenum, founder of the digital design and strategy consultancy GRP21, remembers a time this technology would have come in handy.
“In my case, the next terminal had no line,” says Wenum, a member of Chicago’s WeWork Fulton Market. “I was already waiting 30 minutes, so I didn’t move. I ended up missing my flight because I didn’t know.”
He says there should be an app similar to Google Maps that tracks foot traffic at the airport.
“Give us tools to get creative by allowing us to know when and where to go,” says Wenum.
The technology is already out there. Apple’s iBeacon and Google’s Eddystone can send location-based information to your phone. But Nathan Peterson, vice president of global marketing at the mobile location technology platform Area360, says his company has developed a software called TriceKit that could take advantage of signals broadcasted from the airport.
“Security wait time detection is possible,” says the WeWork member. “The barriers at the moment are getting airports to deploy beacons and getting enough users to become useful in an airport setting.”
Real-time mapping
Since data already exists to show when flights are delayed and canceled, several members said it would make sense to build out a platform that tracks real-time air activity.
“A shared database of maps and information between the airport and airlines to display on web and mobile environments will help deliver consistent content to passengers and airport staff,” says Peterson.
One company that’s in the process of creating real-time maps in airports is Locus Labs, says Peterson. The vision is to build something similar to Google’s Street View. The company has created detailed maps of airports to help passengers plan ahead—for example, how long it takes to walk from the security checkpoint to the gate.
Robert McCoy, president at Partners Travel Management, says one of his favorite mapping websites that serves as a model for futuristic real-time data tracking platforms is Misery Map. The data and visualization is collected and created by FlightAware, a Houston-based global aviation software and data services company.
“I think passengers need to be more aware of what is going on nationally before they fly,” says McCoy, a WeWork member. “The Misery Map is an easy way to understand the map of air activity in the U.S.”
Photo: Karl Baron/Flickr