What Does the TSA Do Besides Airport Security?

The Transportation Security Administration employs 65,000 people, 50,000 of whom are the security officers you see every time you catch a flight. But that isn’t all the TSA does. As part of its stated mission to “protect the nation’s transportation systems to ensure freedom of movement for people and commerce,” the agency — which was founded in the wake of the 9/11 attacks and is part of the Department of Homeland Security — has responsibilities that extend beyond the airport. Here are four things you may not know the TSA is responsible for.

Deploys Air Marshals

Perhaps most notably, the Federal Air Marshal Service (FAMS) is part of the TSA. Though it’s a common misconception that there’s an air marshal on every flight, it’s estimated that there are about 3,000 air marshals serving nationwide. Given that there are more than 44,000 flights in the U.S. every day, the chances are low that your next flight will have an air marshal aboard, but because a crucial part of their job is blending in, there’s no way to know for sure. The program was founded in 1961 but used to be quite small; before 9/11, there were only 33 air marshals flying the friendly skies.

Helps Protect the Surface…

The “T” in TSA covers a lot more than just airplanes. The agency also protects what it calls surface transportation resources, which include freight rail, the highway system, passenger rail, and mass transit. The last of these encompasses more than buses, commuter rails, and light rails, totaling over 6,000 systems. In all, the TSA helps safeguard and implement security measures for over 4 million miles of roads, more than 611,000 bridges, and nearly 140,000 miles of railroad tracks. 

…and the Sea

Focusing mainly on passenger protection and port connectivity, the TSA also assists the Coast Guard with maritime security along approximately 12,000 miles of coastline and over 25,000 miles of navigable waterways. That includes producing and distributing training materials and conducting regulatory inspections aimed at ensuring everything is up to code. Interestingly, the agency also works to secure the nation’s 2.7 million miles of natural gas and oil pipelines, working with operators and government agencies on issues such as cybersecurity, incident response plans, and security preparedness.

Distributes Grants

The TSA disburses funds via five different programs — the Transit Security Grant, Freight Rail Security Grant, Intercity Passenger Rail Security Grant, Intercity Bus Security Grant, and Trucking Security Program — with the intention of bolstering security systems. (Some of it even goes to ferries.) A portion of that money is earmarked for the structural integrity of infrastructure like tunnels and bridges, which are themselves a vital part of the country’s transportation network.