Clear Renewal Discount August 2022

While not quite a "bait n'switch" scheme, the first experiences one has with CLEAR, the one that convinces you to enroll; is probably nothing less than extraordinary! In airports like EWR or AUS, the service WAS truly worth it's annual membership fee of $179 because there was a dedicated security lane for CLEAR members. Fast forward a couple years and multiple airports now offer CLEAR but, for customers paying $179 annually to bypass security lines the convenience of the service has changed significantly (and differs from airport to airport):1) There are no dedicated security lanes 2) TSA controls the process and can/will withhold (briefly) your entry ahead of PreTSA regardless of the CLEAR escort at your side. 3) CLEAR isn't really any more than a line-cutting facilitator at this point (which TSA representatives will be more than happy to point out, and of which other passengers in line will be openly resentful).The efficiency of approaching a kiosk to validate your identity via retinal or fingerprint scan facilitates the process only marginally more quickly than pulling your drivers license or passport & boarding pass to share with the TSA agent before heading through security IF you're merely being ushered in front of others who've been waiting and you still have to wait to do so. The PreTSA line moved faster through security than folks with CLEAR during my most recent experience at IAH. Not only did they surpass the CLEAR line to reach TSA first but they also weren't subjected to a waiting line for the kiosks to validate their identity, no doubt the result of CLEAR's policy to escort each passenger to the TSA agent (which may entail waiting in line with you)! So the upshot is that CLEAR is charging $179 annually without providing the efficiencies that prompted enrollment in the first place. It's further perplexing that CLEAR customers aren't automatically granted PreTSA status so that at least they might rely on the benefit of not having to remove laptop or shoes prior to walking through the scanners, but that's not even a guarantee. Improvements in air travel, the scaling of airline business models, etc., more people are flying today than ever before. Where the 80/20 rule prevailed and perhaps 20% of the traveling population had frequent flier status once upon a time, now 80% of passengers have it. Likewise, PreTSA qualified a passenger to a guaranteed faster excursion through airport security. Now the PreTSA line is as long or longer than the 'regular' security - it still moves faster because you don't have to take off your shoes or pull your laptop, but it's often faster to go through regular security. Similarly CLEAR's service is teetering on a tipping point and unless it can offer dedicated lanes to it's customers or some other route that's significantly time-saving (without pissing other passenger's off in the process); it's not really worth the money. That said, if you're an outbound traveler at EWR with any frequency the CLEAR line moves MUCH faster still, the wait feels significantly less so the annual fee is probably worth it. CLEAR's service is "new" in every respect and they're doubtless evolving so it's my hope they'll figure out a way to negotiate with TSA, Homeland Security, ICE, the FAA or whatever oversight bodies are involved to provide the kind of experience to which it might be argued a frequent traveler is entitled. It seems appropriate that speed and efficiency should be the result of voluntarily providing one's biometric data to facilitate a much greater depth of identification and therefore security to all travelers and air travel employees alike. One would think, and one can hope!