Imagine sitting on a long flight in tight jeans or a full suit just to prove you look good. Pain…. But that’s basically what Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy wants from America now: looks over comfort, even at the airport.
The U.S. Department of Transportation decided to stir the pot this holiday season by telling travelers to leave their pajamas, fuzzy slippers, and bedtime energy at home.
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During a Nov. 24 stop at Newark Airport, Duffy stepped up to the podium and laid out his vision for a more “classy” travel experience. Promoting his new “Golden Age of Travel” initiative, he told the crowd, “I would encourage people to dress a little better, which encourages us to maybe behave a little better. Let’s try not to wear slippers and pajamas as we come to the airport.”
So now, according to the government, your 6 a.m. flight deserves a red carpet look, even though your spirit is still curled up under a weighted blanket.
The timing of Duffy’s fashion lecture wasn’t random. The press conference hit right as Thanksgiving travel kicked into gear. With 73 million people hitting the roads and another 31 million taking to the skies, the DOT seems determined to make the holiday hustle look like Pan Am in the 60s instead of a nationwide episode of Airport Chaos.
The “Golden Age of Travel” campaign, launched Nov. 19, is supposedly about restoring “courtesy and class” to air travel. What “class” means is anyone’s guess. Does it mean swapping your hoodie for a button-down? Or does it just mean not screaming at the gate agent when your flight gets delayed for the third time? They didn’t specify.
What we do know is this: the government is officially side-eyeing your airport sweats. Whether you take the hint or roll up in your flannel pajama set anyway is entirely between you, your boarding group, and that carry-on bag stuffed with the comfy clothes you’re probably still gonna wear.