Get Ready for Tighter Screening at Port Canaveral
Sailing out of Port Canaveral this year? You might want to leave a little extra time for boarding.
The Transportation Security Administration plans to beef up the passenger screening process at the world's third busiest cruise ship port -- a change that could mean longer lines and added delays for vacationers waiting to get on ships.
In a story about the new security measures, the Orlando Sentinel reported that the TSA has assembled a team of security specialists from federal and local agencies who will be randomly deployed at the port to more heavily screen passengers and their bags.
"One day we might have on-site an expert on fraudulent documents and another expert on behavior," a TSA official told the paper. "The next, we might have none or we might have 10 other experts. The idea is to keep things random and unpredictable."
The Sentinel notes that Port Canaveral is the second port in the state where the TSA is upgrading security. The Port of Jacksonville was the first.
The number of people cruising out of Port Canaveral has grown rapidly over the past decade and is expected to continue growing for a least the next few years. Earlier this month the Disney Cruise Line, which has two ships on order, announced plans to base them at the port when they launch in 2011 and 2012. And Royal Caribbean also announced plans this month to base one of the world's largest ships, the 3,634-passenger Freedom of the Seas, at the port starting in 2009.
Sailing out of Port Canaveral this year? You might want to leave a little extra time for boarding.
The Transportation Security Administration plans to beef up the passenger screening process at the world's third busiest cruise ship port -- a change that could mean longer lines and added delays for vacationers waiting to get on ships.
In a story about the new security measures, the Orlando Sentinel reported that the TSA has assembled a team of security specialists from federal and local agencies who will be randomly deployed at the port to more heavily screen passengers and their bags.
"One day we might have on-site an expert on fraudulent documents and another expert on behavior," a TSA official told the paper. "The next, we might have none or we might have 10 other experts. The idea is to keep things random and unpredictable."
The Sentinel notes that Port Canaveral is the second port in the state where the TSA is upgrading security. The Port of Jacksonville was the first.
The number of people cruising out of Port Canaveral has grown rapidly over the past decade and is expected to continue growing for a least the next few years. Earlier this month the Disney Cruise Line, which has two ships on order, announced plans to base them at the port when they launch in 2011 and 2012. And Royal Caribbean also announced plans this month to base one of the world's largest ships, the 3,634-passenger Freedom of the Seas, at the port starting in 2009.
posted by The Cruise Cafe | 12:52 AM
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