American Automobile Association
AAA (read triple-A), also known by its historic name of the American Automobile Association, is a non-profit automobile lobby group and service organization based in Orlando, Florida, United States. Members of AAA are eligible for various discounts, benefits and services such as nationwide road side assistance, insurance coverage, travel information/reservations, and so forth.
History
The American Automobile Association (AAA) was founded on March 4, 1902 in response to a lack of highways suitable for automobiles and widespread public disapproval of the automobile and its noise. In an effort led by the Chicago Motor Club and the Automobile Club of New York, AAA was formed by a group of regional motor clubs, whose members were auto enthusiasts and typically wealthy. The motor clubs combined forces through AAA to promote the automobile as the future of personal transportation. Its influence during the 20th century shaped much of America's automotive lifestyle and public policy.[1]
The AAA clubs expanded their scope of services as years progressed. The first AAA road maps were published in 1905, and the AAA began printing hotel guides in 1917. The AAA began its School Safety Patrol Program in 1920, and many driver safety programs followed in the decades to come. The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, which conducts a large volume of studies regarding motorist safety, was established as separate entity in 1947.
To promote automobile use, the AAA and its member clubs conducted cross country endurance exhibitions, such as the Glidden Tour. The AAA also was a widely recognized sanctioning organization for automobile racing, overseeing many races, including the Indianapolis 500 until 1956. The AAA has recently returned to racing world, sponsoring Mark Martin and David Ragan in a variety of NASCAR events.
The AAA Today
The AAA currently has 50 million members in the United States and Canada, making it the most popular paid-membership organization in North America. The AAA offers travel planning and tour information services for its members, as well as road service, automobile maintenance management tools, and car-buying research information.
The AAA is also involved lobbying and public relations activities on behalf of motorists. The AAA NewsRoom provides an archive of AAA press releases, while the AAA Exchange Website outlines its public policy programs and provides safety information for consumers.
Organization
Based in Heathrow, Florida (a suburb of Orlando), the AAA is a national federation of independent motor clubs who provide member services in exclusive territories. AAA National serves the interests of its motor clubs by providing federation governance, national public policy influence and some AAA-branded goods and services for clubs to sell or provide to their members, most notably maps and travel guides.
Individual members each belong to a single club, such as the Automobile Club of Southern California, AAA Washington, AAA Missouri, AAA Mid-Atlantic, AAA Carolinas or AAA Southern New England. Since the 1990s, the clubs have been merging and reducing their number. As result, some members may belong to large multistate operations while other members may belong to clubs the size of a few counties. To keep services comparable, the clubs have agreed to a basic set of services and have arranged a reciprocal service system so members away from home are able to receive services from any other club. There is a similar reciprocal service system with motor clubs in some foreign countries, especially in Europe and Canada (See Affiliates above).
Affiliates
Regional AAA affiliates include AAA Mid-Atlantic, AAA Carolinas, Automobile Club of Southern California and the California State Automobile Association (for Northern California), the Ohio Auto Club, AAA East Central Auto Club, and The Hartford-Cincinnati Auto Club. Other affiliates are simply "AAA (Name of Region)" such as AAA Northern New England.
The AAA also has reciprocal arrangements with a range of international affiliates in 34 countries. In general, members of affiliates are offered some AAA benefits, such as member discounts, while AAA members are offered equivalent benefits while travelling in the territory of the affiliate. International affiliates include:
- The Canadian Automobile Association in Canada (TourBook guides and maps of Canadian places are published by AAA, and are distributed by AAA and CAA clubs using both AAA and CAA logos).
- The Automobile Association in the United Kingdom.
- ADAC of Germany
- All 29 ARC Europe clubs
- All 7 clubs of AAA Australia
- JAF of Japan
- AMA of Mexico
- ACP of Portugal
- AASA of South Africa
- KAA of South Korea
Member benefits
Roadside assistance
AAA offers 24-hour roadside assistance throughout the United States and Canada. Roadside assistance can be requested through AAA's phone service or web site. Four service calls per year are included with either basic or plus membership. Additional calls cost extra. Members are covered both as drivers and passengers.
Vehicle repair and maintenance
AAA certifies vehicle repair facilities. AAA members are eligible for discounts at a large number of AAA-approved repair shops. In a few areas, AAA has also opened up its own repair shops to serve its members, which are known as AAA Car Care Plus Centers.
Travel services
Travel services provided by AAA include personalized trip maps and travel guides, reduced rates at many hotels, motels, resorts and campgrounds, and reservations and tickets for hotels, cruises, tours, bus, rail and air travel.
Additional benefits
Legal services offered include bail bonds (if arrested for some car-related offenses) and lawyer referral. Member services include discounts at many national retailers (known as the "Show Your Card and Save" program) and consumer information on various topics such as car care and problem diagnosis, researching a new or used car buying, auto warranties, auto loans, and the cost of vehicle ownership. Insurance is also available through AAA, including auto, homeowners, life, mobile home, renters, flood, motorcycle, recreational vehicle and pet. Vehicles can be financed or refinanced through AAA services.
Discounts
AAA and CAA members can receive discounts and benefits from a variety of affiliated businesses. These include better rates on hotel rooms, no-fee traveler's cheques, lower prices for rental cars and train tickets, currency exchange, and discounts for popular travel destinations. Members can also save on prescription drugs at over 57,000 pharmacies nationwide through the AAA Prescription Savings program. A complete list of AAA affilates and discounts can be found on the AAA website.[2]
Publications
AAA distributes nearly 160 million copies of travel-related materials annually, making it one of the world's largest travel publishers.
AAA publishes 26 regional TourBook guides covering destinations across the United States, Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean. The TourBook guides, available in print and on AAA.com, list more than 60,000 AAA Approved and Diamond rated lodgings and restaurants,16,700 Approved attractions, 20,700 events, and 6,900 cities and destination areas, many with photos and maps. On AAA.com, the destination listings also cover 24 international countries and 41 international cities with detailed information from AAA retail guidebooks. AAA publishes 11 regional CampBook guides covering the U.S. and Canada. The CampBook listings, featured in the printed books and on AAA.com, include nearly 11,000 campgrounds.[3]
AAA also publishes numerous retail travel products including guidebooks, atlases, and maps. AAA retail publications are sold at club offices, AAA.com/BarnesandNoble, and better book stores. Some of AAA's popular retail publications include: Traveling With Your Pet: The AAA PetBook® AAA North American Road Atlas Series AAA Europe TravelBook™ AAA Essential Guides AAA Spiral Guides AAA Deluxe Maps AAA World Map
Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills – Automotive Technology Competition
Annually, more than 6,000 high school juniors and seniors enrolled in automotive technology programs from all 50 states compete for millions in prizes and scholarships in the FORD/AAA Student Auto Skills competition. The best two-student teams—determined by a written exam—advance to state finals events, where they race to correctly diagnose and repair a deliberately “bugged” Ford vehicle. A combination of the written and hands-on scores determines a championship team from each state. The 50 state championship teams meet in June at the National Finals. After taking a second written exam, the teams service identical vehicles in a questto deliver a "perfect" vehicle to contest judges and win the title of national champions. The contest has been held annually since 1949, sponsored by various organizations dedicated to quality auto service. AAA has co-sponsored the competition since 1984.
Safety and legislative programs
AAA supports safety programs, including the AAA School Safety Patrol program, teen driver education support, post-novice driver education and pedestrian protection. AAA endorses Graduated Licensing Legislation (GDL) for teenagers as well as child passenger safety laws.
AAA and affiliated clubs work with government at all levels to ensure the public's interests are represented in highway and automobile safety, infrastructure, travel and tourism, energy and environmental policies
Child Passenger Safety
Motor vehicle crashes are the number-one killer of children over the age of 3. Nearly 2,000 crashes killed children 14 and under in 2005 and injured 234,000 more. AAA has a long-term commitment to reducing these injuries and deaths through its Seated, Safe & Secure campaign begun in 2002. AAA has worked to close loopholes in child restraint laws across the nation and educate the public about proper use of child restraints. AAA also actively promotes bike safety, educating motorists about the importance of sharing the roadway and guiding children on the proper skills needed to safely operate their first vehicle.[4]
School and Pedestrian Safety
For more than 87 years, AAA has sponsored the AAA School Safety Patrol™ Program, which instills students with a sense of responsibility and leadership as they protect classmates going to and from school each day. AAA's School's Open, Drive Carefully public awareness campaign reminds motorists to watch out for students walking to or from school or waiting for buses. Additionally, AAA conducts an education campaign each year to raise awareness of driving safety on Halloween.[5]
Teen Driver Safety
AAA has a long-standing commitment to teen driver safety. AAA pioneered the concept of driver education in 1935. Today, the tradition lives on in two widely used texts: Responsible Driving, and How to Drive. In 1997, AAA released a valuable resource for parents of new teen drivers called Teaching Your Teens to Drive: A Partnership for Survival. In 1997, AAA launched an aggressive campaign to reduce teen crash injuries and deaths, pledging to: raise the public’s awareness of the severity of the teen crash problem; pass Graduated Driver Licensing laws in all 50 states and Washington, DC, to give teens more time to develop safe driving practices; and improve the quality of driver education.[6]
In 2005, AAA achieved its goal of passing GDL laws in all 50 states. In just eight years, AAA clubs led the effort on GDL across the nation and brought the number of states with GDL laws from 8 to 50. Data show these laws are working— reducing crashes and saving lives.
Senior Driver Safety
By 2030, one in five people will be 65 or older, making seniors the fastest growing demographic in the US population. In response to the changing demographics, AAA has launched the Lifelong Safe Mobility campaign to help seniors drive as long as safely possible. AAA leads a coalition to identify solutions such as senior-friendly road design, screening tools, education for seniors and their families, and supplemental transportation.[7]
In 2005, AAA launched an unprecedented, scientifically validated self-assessment tool for seniors to use to identify weaknesses in their functional capabilities for driving. AAA Roadwise Review, a CD ROM product designed for use in the privacy of home, helps seniors understand changes in their physical and cognitive capabilities, which may affect their driving.
Maintaining Safe & Efficient Mobility in the 21st century
AAA was among the prominent interest groups in 1956 that built support for creating the Interstate highway system, and we maintain a constant commitment to ensuring adequate funding for a safe and reliable transportation network. Our challenge for the 21st century is to develop a new transportation vision and funding sources that will meet the nation’s future transportation needs. AAA will play an active role in the debate on the future of our transportation system to ensure that the interests of motorists—those who pay for and benefit from the system—are protected.[8]
Criticism
The AAA has been criticized by environmental groups for its public policy positions, including opposition to clean air legislation and bike paths [9]. In addition, Car Talk hosts Tom and Ray Magliozzi have accused the AAA of misrepresenting data regarding the safety of using mobile phones while driving [10]. The Portland-based Better World Club bills itself as an environmentally friendly alternative to the AAA.
References
- AAA, A Brief History
- AAA Fact Sheet 2007
- AAA Automotive Fact Sheet 2007
- AAA Publishing Fact Sheet 2007
- AAA Financial Services Fact Sheet 2007
- AAA Public Affairs Fact Sheet 2007
- AAA School Safety Patrol Fact Sheet 2007
- AAA Travel Fact Sheet 2007
- Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills Competition 2007 Fact Sheet
- Camozzi, Rosemary. Green Machine: Eco-friendly Auto Club Challenges Long-dominant AAA, The Center for Auto Safety, March 9 2003, retrieved January 31 2007.