TSA Daily Passenger Traffic Numbers Are Spiking During Covid-19

When the Covid-19 pandemic struck in March 2020, TSA daily traffic numbers in America were in the 5 digits, a bleak drop from 2019 when TSA (Transportation Security Administration) screened up to 3 million passengers a day.

In fact, the lowest day for passenger traffic this year was April 14, 2020, with only 87,534 passengers being screened across all of the United States (to give you reference, 87,000 is the entire population of Bend, Oregon). But passenger numbers have seen a steady incline, and official numbers show TSA screened over 1 million passengers in a single day since March 2020.

According to a recent statement, TSA screened over 1 million passengers on Sunday, October 18, 2020, the most since the pandemic began, proving that more people are comfortable getting on planes. Based on TSA daily traffic report numbers during Covid-19, the exact number of passengers on October 18 was 1,031,505.

airlines offering covid-19 test — United Airlines.

The week of October 12 to October 18 was a busy week in general, with TSA screening 6.1 million passengers at checkpoints nationwide, the highest weekly volume for TSA since Covid-19, according to TSA.

Since October 18, daily passengers have slightly dropped, according to TSA numbers during Covid-19, ranging between 662,484 passengers (during weekdays) to 958,437 passengers (over the weekend). However, since March, the numbers show a steady incline. April 2020 saw mostly 5 digits, in the high 90,000s. In May, numbers were seen averaging 200,000 to 400,000. In September, numbers were reported as low as 516,068 daily passengers to 900,000.

The increase in traffic comes at a time health officials are urging people to stay home and quarantine as the U.S. set new coronavirus records with 85,000 new cases of the virus reported across the country on October 23, 2020.

Delta Air Lines.

Despite the pandemic, most U.S. airlines were still flying, even with 0 passengers. Airlines are doing everything they can to get customers, including offering Covid-19 tests for passengers to avoid 14-day quarantines in select destinations. The Covid-19 tests are expensive (up to $250 when you take a test with an airline).

With the holidays coming up in November and December, experts estimate more people will be taking flight to visit family and go on vacations, especially because flights will be cheaper than any other time in history.

However, top officials have concluded flying during the holidays will not be safe, especially if you don’t follow safety guidelines and protocol at airports or on planes.

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