CLEAR Secure Traveler Program Returning To SFO

SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) - A company that offers faster access to airport security lines to customers who pay to register fingerprints and other identifying information announced plans to resume service at San Francisco International Airport.

CLEAR has been rebuilt from the ground up since the company left customers high and dry when it abruptly closed in 2009. According to a company statement, service at SFO will resume on May 23rd, ahead of the Memorial Day holiday weekend.

The new CEO, Caryn Seidman Becker, promised the same familiar service.

"It's a different culture. It is a different company. It is a much faster system, but it is the same great idea which is leveraging biometrics, using your fingerprints and iris image to speed through airport security," she said.

KCBS' Susan Leigh Taylor Reports:

Registered travelers can skip having their boarding pass and identification reviewed by a Transportation Security Administration worker, and instead head straight for the inspection area.

The service costs $179 a year for individuals. A family plan allows travelers to add a spouse or partner for $50, while children under 18 can be enrolled on a family plan for free.

Previous CLEAR customers can reactivate their memberships for free.

Seidman Becker said the company is in talks to bring the CLEAR service to Mineta San Jose International and Oakland International Airports as well.

CLEAR is also available to travelers flying from airports in Denver and Orlando, Florida.

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