Real ID era at NYC-area airport begins with angst for some travelers
A Real ID is now required for domestic air travel and to enter federal facilities.
At New York City's LaGuardia Airport on Wednesday, travelers got a taste of what their experience will be like for years to come.
Without a Real ID, expect additional screening
If you don't have a Real ID, you will be asked to show a second form of identification. Without it, you could face issues like what some people experienced on the first day of the rollout.
Some said there were some hiccups at the Transportation Security Administration checkpoint.
Angelo Dixon had just arrived from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and said he was definitely perplexed when he went through security there before hopping on a flight to LaGuardia. He didn't have the new form of identification or a backup form of ID to get through security.
"They asked you to go to a separate line to check your stuff, which is so funny, because if I don't have a star you're going to make me go through additional identification," Dixon said of the 20-minute experience. "I'm so confused because my thing is that they just sent me this ID last year and then why would they send you a new ID, state ID if you knew, domestically, you can't have this?"
CBS News New York explained to him that regardless of the Department of Motor Vehicles sending an updated ID once the old one expires, he still has to apply for a Real ID to fly domestically. A star in the upper right corner is what differentiates it.
Without a Real ID, travelers like Dixon will be asked to move to a separate line within the TSA screening process. There, officials say you'll likely be asked to verify your identity through additional screening. You might also experience delays and potentially be denied access to the checkpoint if your identity cannot be confirmed.
It's advised for now that you get to the airport three hours prior to your scheduled flight if you feel you might be in that situation.
"It was a hassle"
Frida Caymen, who was flying from Miami, said she did have her Real ID, but for some reason the TSA flagged it and made her get on that separate line as well.
"It was a hassle. It was a hassle," Caymen said. "I wasn't upset at them. It's just the system. He said maybe the system was down and go back to the counter, come back again, and the counter was very busy. And she told me that, 'I did everything for you. What do you want from me?'"
The TSA says more staff will be in place to handle potential crowds and helping people like Caymen and Dixon, who clearly didn't have the greatest travel experience on Wednesday.
The process to enter a federal facility is said to be similar to the one at the airport.
Things go a little more smoothly at Westchester County Airport
As you enter the security checkpoint at Westchester County Airport, a video warns travelers about Real ID taking effect. Hope Odell of Putnam Valley, New York, flew in from Charlotte, North Carolina, but said she couldn't get an appointment to get her Real ID.
"I panicked a couple weeks ago. I got to the airport at like 4:30 and it was packed. The security took a long, long time," Odell said.
She said the TSA agents reviewed her passport instead, but initially did ask for her Real ID.
"I don't plan on flying for a while," Odell said.
"They did ask about the Real ID but nothing special. Just, 'Do you have it?' 'Yeah, we have it.' We proceeded. That was it," Atlanta resident Ron Bagley said.
"I flew in from Myrtle Beach this morning and the line went pretty smoothly. Everybody seemed to have their Real ID handy," Yonkers resident Pat Riina said.
