A new survey of U.S. air travelers highlights the top frustrations at airports.
Long security lines (61%), flight delays or cancellations (57%), and lengthy waits at airline terminal counters (41%) were the most common frustrations travelers cited, according to the survey conducted on behalf of Checkin.com Group, which develops technologies to streamline online check-ins.
Respondents could select multiple answers in the survey, which revealed how much time travelers typically spend waiting in airport lines.
Only 8% said they wait less than 10 minutes at security or check-in counters. Around 27% reported wait times between 10 and 19 minutes, while 29% indicated waits of 20 to 29 minutes.
About a quarter (23%) said they wait between 30 and 45 minutes, and 9% reported waits between 46 minutes and an hour, with 4% experiencing delays longer than an hour.
When asked about paying for the convenience of having their travel documents reviewed and accepted before arriving at the airport, 76% said they would be willing to pay a fee to skip the lines and head straight to the gate. Of those, 35% would pay over $10, another 33% were comfortable paying between $5 and $10, and 8% would pay between $1 and $5 for the service.
“It’s actually surprising that American consumers are so irritated by airport delays that they would be willing to pay their airlines extra to have their passports, visas and enhanced driver’s licenses reviewed and accepted before they leave for the airport,” April Rae Mallord, general manager, US Market, Checkin.com Group, said in a news release. “The fact is that the technology and systems exist today to remove this extra friction from their flying experience.”