In our previous article, we looked at the state of ID requirements and the the right to international travel for U.S. citizens.

What about domestic travel within the USA without ID?

Flying? Domestic US airline passengers are subject to demands for ID by airlines and the TSA. These demands are of dubious validity, and have arbitrary secret exceptions. Many people fly without ID every day. But not everyone is able or willing to challenge these authoritative-seeming demands for ID to fly.

Driving? States that choose to participate in the national REAL-ID system are making it harder and harder to get driver’s licenses or state IDs. It’s easier for a US citizen to get a passport or passport card than to get a driver’s license in some states. But you can’t legally drive in the US without a driver’s license issued by a state, US territory, or foreign government.

Unless you walk, ride a horse or bicycle, or get a ride in a car driven by someone else, that leaves buses and trains as the primary modes of long-distance travel for people in the U.S. without ID.

Can you take a long-distance bus or train in the US without ID? And if not, what could or should be done to guarantee that right? Read More →