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Technology and traveling
RICHARD WEINER
Technology for Lawyers
Published: January 9, 2015
The ABA has put out a brief overview of how lawyers can take advantage of some newer technology to make their air travel easier. Here is a short précis.
Get Tripit (www.tripit.com), which acts as a personal assistant to organize travel information. Emailing flight information to Tripit automatically creates a travel calendar, and you can create itineraries with maps. Basic Tripit is free, but a paid version has more features, including price watching.
Want to skip the TSA line? Check out GOES (Global Entry Travel System), which is the list of “trusted” travelers who may not have to go through the lengthy security lines at airports (CAK—not so bad; DEN—you don’t want).
To get a GOES card, fill out the application here: https://goes-app.cbp.dhs.gov/main/goes. There is a $100 application fee.
If you aren’t on a watch list, you should get preliminary approval (although, who knows?). Following preliminary approval, you’ll be asked in for a personal interview, and then, if all goes well, you get the GOES card.
For many airlines, your GOES number goes right on the ticket, but, under any circumstances, you will save a ton of time waiting at airports. BTW—you still do need to go through a metal detector, but you don’t have to unwrap everything you’re carrying.
Reports indicate that a GOES card saves 75 percent the amount of time in line over not having one.
Next up is GateGuru. A smartphone/tablet app that displays “inside information” about the airport you’re sitting in. Like, if you’re in DEN or ATL, huge airports with lots of stores, restaurants, restrooms, etc., all of which are miles away from wherever you are.
GateGuru lists your itinerary, closest airports, everything within the airport, weather, maps, and more. You can rent a car from Avis through the app, and see your “travel stats,” which you can compare to other flyers, if you want to.
The ABA also crunched some numbers, and found that the least expensive flights are on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday, and booked between one the three months in advance. Rate reductions for the week are always done by the airlines on Tuesdays at 3PM, which makes that time the best time to buy a ticket.