Press Release

 

Clear Sign Ups in DC Area Top 1,300

 

Clear Extends Enrollment Station in Longworth House Office Building and Launches at the GAO, with American Express Office and Pentagon Outlets to Open in January

 

Members to Receive Special Discount Through Credit Unions; Offers Free Clear Cards for Active Duty Military Members

 

WASHINGTON, DC November 27, 2007 – Clear®, the fast pass for airport security, announced that sign-ups in the DC-area have topped 1,300 and that it has dramatically increased its enrollment capacity in the DC-area to meet demand by extending its enrollment in the Congressional Federal Credit Union of the Longworth House Office Building and by opening an enrollment station at the Senate Federal Credit Union branch at the Government Accountability Office.  In January, two more enrollment stations will open – at the Pentagon in cooperation with the Pentagon Federal Credit Union and at an American Express Travel Service Office in downtown Washington, DC.  Members of the Federal Credit Unions receive 14 months for the price of 12 when enrolling in Clear. Members of the Military on active duty receive free Clear cards.

 

This past summer, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA), on behalf of Reagan and Dulles Airports, requested proposals from service providers, including Clear, that operate express lanes at the security checkpoints.  MWAA is now in the process of choosing the entity that will run the programs there. Because anyone purchasing a Clear card will be able to use it at the lanes at Reagan and Dulles, no matter which service provider is selected to run that program, and because 13 airports outside Washington already accept Clear cards, Clear decided to open the enrollment centers in advance of the Authority’s decision. (However, enrollees at the three DC-area locations will not be charged for their memberships until the program is operational at Dulles or Reagan airports.)

 

To receive a discount, applicants enrolling at the Congressional or Senate Federal Credit Union branches must begin their applications at:  flyclear.com/cfcu  or flyclear.com/ussfcu.  To receive a discount, applicants enrolling at the Pentagon Federal Credit Union must enroll at: flyclear.com/pfcu.

 

In addition to offering a special discount to members of the Credit Unions, all other government employees (federal, state and local) receive 13 months for the price of 12 when enrolling in Clear.  To receive the government discounts offered by Clear, applicants must start their enrollment from flyclear.com/government.  This discount will be available to all first responders, emergency workers, legislators and their staffs, and law enforcement officers, among others, at the local, state and federal levels. 

 

Since last year, Clear has been providing free Clear cards to active duty military that choose to enroll in the program – an offer that will continue and be available at all Clear enrollment locations. 

 

The opening of the enrollment centers in the DC-area will allow travelers to sign up for membership in Clear in convenient locations. The Longworth enrollment station is open weekdays from 9AM - 4PM.  The Congressional Federal Credit Union, today with over 45,000 members, was established over fifty years ago to serve the U.S. House of Representatives and now also serves over fifty corporate partners and associations. 

 

The Clear enrollment station in the Senate GAO branch is open from 8-1PM and 2-4PM.  The United States Senate Federal Credit Union, operating since 1935, has over 33,000 members. 

 

The Clear location in the Pentagon branch will be open from 7:30AM - 4PM.  The Pentagon Federal Credit Union serves over 740,000 members in the Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Department of Homeland Security, Department of Defense, defense-related companies, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

 

Charles Mallon, CEO of the Congressional Federal Credit Union, said, “Our members have been delighted with the fast and easy sign-up for the Clear service at our convenient branch location. Our partnership with Clear has not only provided a discount for our members but reduced the time they spend waiting in airport lines.”

 

The Pentagon Federal Credit Union CEO Frank Pollack said, “The agreement with Clear will allow our members to not only save time at the airport using express lanes, but also when enrolling, which they can do right at the Credit Union’s office within the Pentagon.”

 

Steven Brill, Clear’s CEO said, “The demand for a registered traveler program in Washington, DC is as high as in San Francisco, San José, and New York where Clear is already operating. It makes good business sense for us to open our enrollment stations in the DC-area now. The locations at the federal credit union branches will provide the nation’s public servants with easy access to enrollment, and so that they will receive their cards by the time the programs launch at Reagan or Dulles airports. Whether Clear is chosen by the Airports or not, the Clear card will still be accepted there as it is at more than a dozen airports nationwide.  These credit unions see the value in providing their members with a special discounted rate and we’re delighted to set up shop in their branches to maximize convenience for those serving our military and helping to write the nation’s laws,” he added.

 

“Clear is a program for frequent fliers,” Brill explained, “and Members of the House and Senate and their staffs are among the world’s most frequent fliers. Clear is designed to give them an extra  half hour or more at home in the morning or tending to business in the office in the afternoon and then go out to the airport and get on a line where the wait time is predictable and short.  We think the price –  $99.95 a year – is fair, and so do our customers,” Brill added, “but we decided that it made sense to extend ourselves a little more to public servants who travel. And with programs about to launch at Reagan and Dulles, this is the right time to extend that offer.”

 

Clear cards are currently accepted at Albany, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, LaGuardia, Little Rock, New York’s JFK, Newark, Orlando, Reno, San Francisco, San José and Westchester County (NY) airports, and soon, Denver. The Denver Airport recently chose Clear after completing its extensive competitive bidding process, to launch the express security lanes early next year. As part of its nationwide marketing efforts, Clear will open its first enrollment station in Denver on December 3, through a partnership with Hyatt, at the Hyatt Regency Tech Center. The Tech Center is located near some of Denver’s major corporate headquarters, who are already in contact with our sales team, in anticipation of the program’s launch. An enrollment center at the Airport is scheduled for December 10th. Other Clear enrollment locations will open soon in Denver at other Hyatt locations and at American Express Travel Service Office, through Clear’s partnership with American Express. These convenient downtown locations allow Denver’s frequent travelers to enroll fast and easily right near their offices.

 

To date, every airport that has selected a provider in an open, competitive process has chosen Clear.  In addition to Reagan and Dulles, other airports who are currently seeking competitive bids from registered traveler service providers are Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and Oakland (CA) International Airport.  In anticipation of the Atlanta airport launching the program there, Clear has opened enrollment locations at the downtown Hyatt hotel and is expected to launch at the American Travel Service Office soon.  Clear has been marketing its service to San Francisco Bay-area residents since it opened its operations earlier this year at both San José and San Francisco Airports.

 

About Clear - Clear is run by Verified Identity Pass, Inc. Clear is the largest registered traveler program operating at U.S. airports. Clear has now enrolled 80,000 travelers nationwide. It provides members with access to a separate, faster line through airport security checkpoints by using an identity card containing their encrypted fingerprint or iris images. The annual fee of $99.95 is charged once applicants are approved by the government. Applicants start their enrollment online and complete the process at an enrollment location where their biometrics (fingerprints and iris images) are captured and their identification is validated. Clear has been operational since July 19, 2005. For more information, please visit: flyclear.com.