Going to LAX? Check Twitter first

Worried about missing a flight at LAX? A new Twitter account managed by the airport could help you gauge how long it’ll take to get to your gate.

Announced this week, the new account is already up-and-running. Once every 30 minutes it posts updates on traffic in and around the airport, as well as availability in each of the airport’s parking lots.

Every 15 minutes, you can find updated wait times for security screenings at all eight terminals. Those estimates haven’t before been available and are being provided through a pilot program with a tech startup called Plot.

“The number one way to reduce stress during travel is to take away the unknowns,” said Los Angeles World Airports chief innovation and commercial strategy officer Justin Erbacci in a statement.

The travel time estimates measure the length of a trip from freeway exits around the airport to the central terminal area. Separate estimates measure how long it's likely to take driving through the arrivals/departures horseshoe.

The service arrives just in time for what’s expected to be a very busy Memorial Day weekend. Airport officials predicted yesterday that nearly 1.4 million travelers would fly in and out of the airport between Thursday and Tuesday.

As of Friday morning, the drive-time through the upper-level (departures) terminal area was a full 31 minutes. Drives through the lower level (arrivals) were estimated at 14 minutes.

More than 70 percent of parking spots were full at most of the airport’s lots and times through security ranged from five to 22 minutes.