By Allison Pohle
The frustration of travelers with long TSA lines has become a boon for one company: Clear Secure.
Passengers have downloaded the Clear app 289,000 times since the beginning of March, when a partial government shutdown started to feel real at airports. That is more than triple the number from a year ago, data from the market-intelligence firm Sensor Tower shows.
Clear's stock is a clear beneficiary, up around 60% from a month ago. For years, Clear has been the fast lane through airport security -- an extra layer of insurance for making a flight. That has become more of a value proposition for travelers as Transportation Security Administration staff members have been working without a paycheck and hundreds of them have called in sick.
At John F. Kennedy International Airport this week, security lines for both the standard and PreCheck screening snaked several rows back. But those with Clear Plus got through security in under 10 minutes. The contrast was so stark that some PreCheck passengers peeled off from the melee to sign up for a Clear Plus membership on the spot.
Clear shares began their surge late last month, when the company provided sales guidance well exceeding Wall Street estimates. The company's expansion beyond airport-security checks is fueling some of the optimism. Clear1, its identity-verification platform for businesses, had record bookings in the past quarter, and Clear has struck several deals with healthcare organizations to streamline patient check-ins and ID checks.
Clear Chief Executive Caryn Seidman Becker has emphasized the company's ambitions to branch into new areas. It has been integrating its technology with Epic, one of the country's biggest electronic medical-record platforms. And it recently signed a contract with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Most of the company's revenue comes from its consumer business, Clear Plus. That costs travelers $209 annually, though many travel credit cards offer statement credits, which work like rebates, for the cost.
Clear has been installing biometric eGates at airports over the past several months -- a move that saves travelers a step. It opens directly to the TSA screening area where travelers load their bags and go through the body scanner, rather than requiring an additional stop where a TSA officer checks IDs.
Some passengers had questioned the value of their Clear memberships, citing extra ID checks and shorter wait times in the PreCheck lane. The eGates are now operational at 38 airports, and Clear plans to install them at all airports where it operates this year.
Still, at some airports, including Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, travelers have reported waiting more than an hour in the Clear Plus lane because of the TSA staffing shortages. Clear hasn't been available at every airport during the partial government shutdown, even the ones it typically serves. At Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport, where travelers have experienced some of the longest lines, both Clear and TSA PreCheck lines have been closed recently.
A Clear spokesman said problems beyond the company's control temporarily affected service in New Orleans, and continue to do so in Houston, where only standard screening has been available. The Department of Homeland Security didn't comment on the status of Clear Plus and TSA PreCheck lanes.
The company has donated about $200,000 in gas cards and grocery cards to TSA officers and is helping the agency with line management, the spokesman said.
"We hope a resolution comes soon," Kyle McLaughlin, executive vice president of aviation at Clear, said in a statement. "We are working hard to support all our stakeholders, including airlines, airports, the TSA, and most importantly, American travelers who deserve better."
Under typical circumstances, Clear isn't the only way to get through security more quickly. TSA has updated its PreCheck line with a program called TSA PreCheck Touchless ID. Travelers must register with individual airlines, but it doesn't cost anything on top of the standard PreCheck fee of around $80 for five years.
John Mayhew registered for Clear a few years ago because it was a free perk on his credit card. The 40-year-old information-technology consultant from the Charlotte, N.C., area travels frequently for work and said he felt more comfortable traveling this month because he had the service.
Next week, though, he is flying to Atlanta, and he has been following reports of long lines at the airport.
"We'll see how that goes," he said. "It may just be worth the four-hour drive."
Write to Allison Pohle at allison.pohle@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 25, 2026 05:30 ET (09:30 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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