Security lines shorter Tuesday for passengers at Seattle SEATTLE (AP) =97 Security lines eased Tuesday at Seattle-Tacoma= International=20 Airport after several days of lengthy delays that frayed tempers, and=20 caused some missed flights. To avoid a repeat of recent long lines at peak= =20 travel times, the Port of Seattle, which owns and operates the airport,=20 will hire people for "line management" to allow federal workers to focus on= =20 screening, said airport spokesman Bob Parker. The line-management people,=20 for instance, advise passengers to take the change out of their pockets and= =20 otherwise prepare for the metal detector. The port will hire 50 people, at= =20 a cost of about $150,000 a month, Parker said. "We're not happy on having=20 to do it," Parker said, "but we need to make sure our customers have a good= =20 experience when they come." The Transportation Security Administration has= =20 said it will hire some part-time screeners for peak travel times. It's=20 uncertain how soon they'll be available for the busy summer travel season,= =20 however. On Monday, waits reached 90 minutes for travelers during the busy= =20 early morning hours and from about 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., said Parker, who=20 described it as "gridlock." "That line is ridiculous," said Janna=20 Christensen, 19, of Redmond, who missed a flight to Missoula, Mont. "I was= =20 here in plenty of time. They have to get this situation fixed." The airport screened about 56,000 departing passengers Sunday and an=20 estimated 50,000 Monday, Parker said. That's comparable to levels before=20 the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, "which is very good for the=20 industry. "Our mission to get people where they're going and it really=20 pains us when they don't get where they're supposed to," he said. The TSA=20 staffing level in Seattle is 1,040, with 1,035 currently employed, but just= =20 under 1,000 screeners are available for shifts. Some are on military or=20 disability leave, and others are training new screeners, TSA spokeswoman=20 Suzanne Luber said. But she said the key reason for the crunch is a=20 summertime travel increase. Airlines say air travel is up 25 percent over=20 the same period last year, Luber said. On Monday mornings, summer travelers= =20 combine with business travelers to create a greater crunch. Denver has been= =20 experiencing a similar problem, she said. The TSA announced in May that it= =20 would cut 6,000 passenger and baggage screeners from its 55,600-person work= =20 force by October because of budget constraints. Members of Congress, mostly= =20 Republican, limited funds for screeners because of concerns the agency grew= =20 too big too fast. The first round of 3,000 job cuts was completed late last month. Luber said= =20 those cuts were not an issue in Seattle. Horizon, Alaska and United=20 Airlines each delayed some flights for 10 to 25 minutes to give passengers= =20 a chance to reach the gates, airline spokesmen said Monday. But delaying=20 flights too much can throw airline schedules off elsewhere. Alaska=20 Airlines, which averages 150 daily departures from Sea-Tac, saw some=20 flights depart without all their passengers, said Jack Walsh, an airline=20 spokesman. "The TSA has told us they recognize there is a staffing problem= =20 and we anxiously look forward to them resolving that problem," Walsh said=20 Monday. The airport has spent $25,000 in overtime for Port of Seattle=20 police over the past two weekends to free up more of the federal employees= =20 to actually screen passengers, Parker said. He continued to advise=20 travelers to reach the airport two hours in advance of their flights. And=20 passengers need to stay within the on-board limit of one carry-on bag and=20 one personal item, such as a purse or a briefcase, Parker said. *************************************************** The owner of Roger's Trinbago Site/TnTisland.com Roj (Roger James) escape email mailto:ejames@xxxxxxxxx Trinbago site: www.tntisland.com Carib Brass Ctn site www.tntisland.com/caribbeanbrassconnection/ Steel Expressions www.mts.net/~ejames/se/ Mas Site: www.tntisland.com/tntrecords/mas2003/ Site of the Week: http://www.carib-link.net/naparima/naps.html TnT Webdirectory: http://search.co.tt *********************************************************