Electronic screening gates introduced at Tampa International Airport

Credit: Tampa International Airport

Tampa International Airport’s (TPA) passengers travelling to the airport’s Airside A are now benefiting from new electronic screening technology, which is set to be introduced throughout the entire Tampa Airport site.

As of the first week of February 2020, Tampa International Airport launched the first set of electronic screening gates at the entrance to the Airside A shuttle lobby.

The gates allow passengers possessing tickets and cleared guests to access the airside shuttle. The new technology replaces the current system, which requires manual scanning of passenger tickets.

Passengers scan their boarding pass and, upon approval, the gates open and allow the passenger through. Should they be at the wrong gate, they will receive an error message and not be approved to gain access.

The introduction of the e-gates sees Tampa International Airport increase its boarding pass scanning devices from two to four per airside. As a result, processes have been sped up, making it faster for guests to get to their gate and improving the seamless travel experience for passengers.

Following a successful trial period, Tampa International Airport intends to introduce the e-gates at the remaining three shuttle entrances in late 2020.

Like most major airports, Tampa International Airport faces growing passenger traffic and congestion issues. As a result, this is not the first of the airport’s efforts to improve the passenger travel experience. When Tampa Airport’s state-of-the-art Rental Car Centre opened on the 14 February 2018, the airport also debuted an innovative common-use remote bag check – the first of its kind in a North American airport. The service allows passengers aboard multiple airlines to print their boarding passes, tag their luggage and drop it off at the same location – before ever stepping foot inside the airport’s main terminal.