El Paso International Airport passengers react to TSA announcement on shoe removal

The Transportation Security Administration announces that passengers will no longer need to take off their shoes at the airport when passing through security checks — and flyers at El Paso International Airport have mixed feelings about it.

After almost 20 years, TSA is eliminating this security measure that leaves many concerned with safety risks.

But the U.S. Department of Homeland Security ensures that safety is their highest priority.

They say they’ve removed the requirement to quote improve travel experience and new security measures will vary airport from airport.

A few local passengers had an opinion on whether this is more convenient for them or if they’re worried about security.

"I find it more convenient for myself," says passenger Travis Harper. "It's a little annoying to take your shoes off and then put them back on, but of course, there's always a setback when it comes to that. It could pose a risk."

Another traveler, Juan Pablo Garcia Lopez, told ABC-7 in Spanish that taking his shoes off at TSA has never been a big issue for him, but he rather keep taking them off if it's just a small thing we can all do to contribute to national security.

ABC-7 spoke with TSA's Acting Deputy Administrator about how this decision came to be after nearly two decades in use.

“With advancements in technology, improvements in identity verification, vetting and threat detection at the checkpoint and before," said Adam Stahl. "This is a long time coming, and we've made significant investments in a lot of these processes over the years.”

The change is already in effect at all U.S. airports.