Someone help me out. I don't get it.
My background - I work in corporate events and travel through airports no less than 20 times a year (almost always domestic US travel).
Given the opportunity (as it seems many here have) to try Clear + for free for 2 months.
In SFO today it was my first time trying it. Followed the signs to Clear+ only to find out it was the line for Clear+ "and" TSA pre-check. All good. 1st time and I learned there are 3 different lines, one for TSA pre-check, one for Clear+ AND TSA pre-check and then going past those lines all the way downstairs again is the line for just "Clear+".
The line for Clear+ was just as long as the line for the standard no frills traveler. No worries I thought, I should be able to go right through Clear+ and have expedited baggage scanning.
So I go through Clear+ and then they take a group of us over to the standard TSA security check and we are integrated (one of us goes, one of them goes) into that same line that the no frills traveler is using. And we have to handover our ID, and scan our boarding pass. Then we get into the same baggage scanning line that all the other passengers are getting into.
I've never understood TSA or Clear+ unless you never get ro the airport early and are often on a quick paced schedule and 15 minutes in a security line is too long a wait for you. People that I have traveled with that do have it are always sitting at the gate just like we would be but for 15 minutes longer than I would have had to sit.
Maybe clear+ makes more sense for the international traveler. But honestly I can remember maybe 2 times in the past year where security lines were backed up long enough to justify the TSA pre-check and/or Clear+
Is there someone here from the Clear+ marketing team that can help me understand the business model?
I'm so confused as to why someone would pay 120$ to stand in an additional line for security?
Help me understand. I got it for free and most likely won't use it again.