Sen. Markey Says Airlines Should Waive Bag Check Fees This Summer

BOSTON (CBS) - The summer travel season is almost here, and already security lines at many airports are out of control.

Some airlines are telling passengers to get to the airport three or even four hours before their flights.

On Friday, Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey proposed one solution asking airlines to waive their bag check fees this summer.

"Passengers commonly avoid sky-high bag fees by instead, carrying their luggage directly onto the airplanes," Sen. Markey says.

And that means TSA agents have more bags to examine, slowing down the screening process, and causing a kind of gridlock.

"I've been to Chicago O'Hare lately and that's been a disaster. Minneapolis St. Paul has been a disaster lately. So I've seen very long lines," says one frequent flyer.

Senator Markey is calling on airlines to dump bag fees this summer so fewer people will carry on. "It is time for the airlines to stop prioritizing their bottom line over their customers standing in line," he says.

Markey admits that's only part of the solution. The TSA's budget has been cut and there are fewer screeners on duty even as passenger numbers have gone up.

The agency is adding about 760 screeners soon, so that could help, but some travelers want a more dramatic change, calling for the security system to be privatized.

"Get the government out of it, that's my take, and I travel every week," says another traveler.

So far Congress has shown no interest in forcing airlines to cut bag fees or in dramatically increasing the TSA's budget.

WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Karyn Regal reports