The AAA logo
The AAA (usually read triple-A, or sometimes three As), formerly known as the American Automobile
Association, is an American not-for-profit automobile lobby group and service
organization. The organization changed its official name to simply the initials in 1997.
History
The American Automobile Association was founded on March 4, 1902 in Cleveland, Ohio as a response to a lack of roads and highways suitable for autos. The organization
originally had 1000 charter members, and these original members were generally of an auto enthusiast demographic. AAA’s
membership base is and was formed from a number of local and regional motor clubs, and these auto clubs combined forces to create
a more powerful organization. Today one in five Americans is a AAA member.
The association expanded its scope of services as years progressed. The first AAA road maps were published in 1905, and AAA began printing hotel guides in 1917. 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.
AAA was a sanctioning organization for automobile racing in the United States until
1956. It sanctioned many races, including the Indianapolis
500. After the Le Mans 1955 disaster, AAA decided that auto racing
distracted from its primary goals, and the United States Automobile Club
was formed to take over the race sanctioning/officiating.
Current operations
A typical AAA Car Care Plus center
The name "AAA" refers to a national consortium of numerous independent automobile clubs, each of which may not necessarily be
a not-for-profit organization. The Texas club, for example, is organized as a limited
liability company, an explicitly for-profit business structure, and is officially known as AAA Texas, LLC[1].
Members belong to an individual club (such as the Automobile Club of Southern California, AAA Texas or Auto Club South, for
example) and the clubs in turn own AAA. The member clubs have arranged a reciprocal service system so that members of any
participating club are able to receive member services from any other affiliate club. Member dues finance all club services as
well as the operations of the national organization.
From the standpoint of the consumer, AAA clubs primarily provide emergency road services to members. Clubs also distribute
road maps and travel publications, and rate restaurants and hotels according to a "diamond" scale (one to five). Many offices
sell automobile liability insurance, provide travel agency, auto-registration and notary services. AAA also offers member
discounts at over 100 partners including many hotels, Amtrak, Hertz rental cars, LensCrafters, Payless ShoeSource and FTD.com through its "Show Your Card &
Save" program.
International affiliates
The AAA has reciprocal arrangements with a range of international affiliates. In general, members of affiliates are offered
the same benefits as members of the AAA while traveling in the United States, whilst AAA members are offered equivalent benefits
whilst traveling in the territory of the affiliate.
International affiliates include:
Criticism
AAA has been criticized for its lobbying arm's environmental positions. Specifically, the organization has a record of
supporting more highway construction and opposing environmental restrictions on automobiles. The Environment News Service notes a 1999 AAA effort to persuade lawmakers to focus their efforts away from
automobiles in reducing air pollution. AAA's interim vice president of public relations, Susan Pikrallidas, is quoted as saying,
"Overall air quality in our cities is improving, and it's due in large part to the automobile,"[1] in reference to a report attributing cleaner air to cleaner
cars.
Harper's Magazine notes, that AAA opposed "strengthening of the Clean Air Act - a measure supported by three fourths of Americans - on the grounds that it would limit the
'personal mobility' of motorists."[2] AAA, besides opposing environmental restrictions on automobiles, often supports
widening highways and opposes smart growth.
Many AAA members are unaware of how the organization is representing them, according to many environmentalists. The
Sierra Club writes that although AAA supports "more highway spending, fewer pollution
controls and less money for mass transit ... This isn't exactly common knowledge".[2] In 2002, Mitch
Rofsky and Todd Silberman founded the Better World Club to be an environmentally friendly alternative to the AAA. As of June 2006, this organization had just
under 20,000 members nationwide.
In addition to criticism of the AAA's lobbying activities, Car Talk hosts
Tom and Ray Magliozzi have accused the AAA of
misrepresenting data regarding the safety of using mobile phones while driving [3].
See also
References
External links
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