CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) -- The Transportation Security Administration wants to add a second screening lane to speed up security inspections at Yeager Airport.
Engineers from the federal agency visited Yeager last week.
About 1,000 passengers pass through security at the airport each day. About 300 of them flow through the area from 5 a.m. to 6:15 a.m., and can end up waiting for around 15 minutes, said Mike Cleveland, TSA's local federal security director.
Passengers also bunch up at the checkpoint around noon and between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. when many flights leave.
Cleveland doesn't want passengers to wait for more than 10 minutes to get through security. The new lane would be open only when there is a large influx of passengers. No new screeners will be hired.
Cleveland expects the new lane to open in September or October.
TSA also has requested 1,354 square feet from the airport to expand. The airport's governing board voted to authorize a $15.74-a-square-foot lease at its monthly meeting Wednesday. TSA employees will use this new space as a training and employee break room.
The walls of the current space will be knocked down to create space for the second screening lane.
