The MLB Giants yesterday signed a deal with N.Y.-based biometric security company Clear, which "offers a Transportation Security Administration-approved prescreening process for fliers, to provide a similar service" for fans at AT&T Park, according to Benny Evangelista of the S.F. CHRONICLE. The program "rolls out May 1 to a small group -- 300 season-ticket holders, picked in a lottery-style draft, who will head to a special line at the ballpark’s crowded main entrance." Existing Clear members "can also use the fast lane." Giants Senior VP/Ballpark Operation Jorge Costa said that unlike Clear’s airport service, which costs fliers $179 per year, the ballpark’s new Fast Access lane "will be free for Giants fans." Evangelista reports even with a Clear membership, fans will "still have bags they bring to the ballpark checked by security." The Giants "tested the Clear system at the last 10 regular season games in September with a temporary fast lane on the center-field side of the ballpark." It was the first time the Clear system "was used outside an airport." The company "will use a tablet computer to scan fingerprints and verify each ticket holder’s identity." Instead of the back gate, the Fast Access lane "will bypass metal detectors at the ballpark’s main entrance." MLB "directed all 30 teams" to screen all fans entering ballparks by this season (S.F. CHRONICLE, 4/2).
