At Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, all runways and roadways were clear and operational the day after snow blanketed the region.
But “substantial” Transportation Security Administration staffing callouts caused long security wait times Wednesday morning, said airport spokesperson Andy Gobeil.
The airport itself, he said, “is fine,” and extra staff had been called into work and some slept on site Tuesday to be ready.
TSA agents rely on the same roads and transit services as travelers, and Tuesday’s winter storm made moving across metro Atlanta an icy mess.
Credit: Ben Hendren for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Credit: Ben Hendren for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The scene Wednesday mirrors a similar one on Jan. 11, another day after the season’s first snowfall when lines stretched past three hours after about one-third of TSA staff missed work.
As of about 10:45 a.m. Wednesday the airport had seen more than 380 cancellations, according to FlightAware data, 16% of departures and 20% of arrivals.
It’s “another tough day,” confirmed TSA spokesperson Mark Howell. “Weather is affecting people’s ability to get in.”
The agency only had 18 lanes open in the domestic terminal as of about 10 a.m. — about 10 fewer than planned — but they’re “starting to work through the waits,” he said. The afternoon should get better as more staff show up for later shifts, he said.
Travelers at South PreCheck security midmorning told the AJC they waited up to 2.5 hours, though some in Digital ID passed through in 20 minutes.
“The volume today is lighter than yesterday,” when tens of thousands of passengers were trying to fly out after the College Football Playoff championship game in Atlanta and a holiday weekend, said Hartsfield-Jackson deputy general manager Bryan Benefiel.
This congestion was driven by flight cancellations during the snowstorm, which meant more travelers had to try again to fly out Wednesday plus the TSA short-staffing, he said.
Tuesday’s snowfall left MARTA bus service suspended and many roads covered in ice Wednesday morning. But even rail service was unreliable Wednesday morning, traveler Jason Schoeneberg told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Credit: Ben Hendren for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Credit: Ben Hendren for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
He and his family were forced to stay overnight in Concourse B on Tuesday after landing from a vacation because roads were icy and MARTA rail had already stopped for the night.
They tried to take the first train at about 5:55 a.m. but were not able to reach the Avondale station until about 8:10 a.m. “That trip is usually about 45 minutes,” he said.
“All the trains are delayed and none of the times posted in the MARTA app or station signs (were) close to accurate,” he said. “No idea how long you’re going to wait on very cold platforms.” All but one of the airport’s fare machines were out of Breeze cards, he said.
On Wednesday morning MARTA urged travelers to allow extra time as rail service train frequencies varied.
Renato Ferreira was traveling with his wife from San Francisco to Brazil with a connection in Atlanta when he ended up stuck on a delayed plane at Hartsfield-Jackson for hours Tuesday evening until his flight was canceled late in the evening.
They were sent to the Ellis Hotel in downtown Atlanta, which was “a big mess,” Ferreira said. He said they didn’t arrive until 2 a.m. after waiting an hour for a Lyft ride.
“Delta was dumping everybody in all the hotels, and they didn’t have rooms. … So we had to wait another hour to get a room.”
In the process of trying to catch his 11 a.m. rescheduled flight on Wednesday, he got caught in the long security lines. At about 9:20 a.m. he was worried about missing the flight.
“I can understand the whole situation with weather, but I mean, I don’t think anyone was really prepared here for this,” Ferreira said.
The airport is advising passengers to arrive at least three hours prior to departure, unless otherwise directed by an airline.
Editor’s note: This developing story will be updated with additional information.
