American Automobile Association

The American Automobile Association (AAA - pronounced "Triple A") is a federation of motor clubs throughout North America. AAA is a non-profit member service organization; with 55.6 million members in the United States and Canada. AAA provides services to its members, including roadside assistance and others. Its national headquarters are in Heathrow, Florida.

The American Automobile Association (the "AAA" or "Triple-A") was founded on March 4, 1902, in Chicago, Illinois, when in response to a lack of roads and highways suitable for automobiles, nine motor clubs with a total of 1,500 members banded together to form the Triple-A. Those individual motor clubs included the Chicago Automobile Club, Automobile Club of America, Automobile Club of New Jersey, and others. The Automobile Club of Buffalo joined in 1903.

In 1904, the AAA merged with the very first American automobile organization, the American Motor League.

The first AAA road maps were published in 1905. AAA began printing hotel guides in 1917. Triple-A began its School Safety Patrol Program in 1920, the first of the association's driver safety programs, which provided local schools with materials, including badges and ID cards to train and organize students into a patrol force. The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, which conducts studies on motorist safety, was established as a separate entity in 1947.

AAA created an organization called the Racing Board, and later known as the Contest Board, in 1902 to officiate the Vanderbilt Cupinternational automobile race in Long Island, New York. The Racing Board sanctioned the Indianapolis 500 and awarded national racing championships in 1905, 1916, 1920–1941, and 1946–1955. After the 1955 Le Mans 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. In 2005, AAA re-entered racing as a sponsor of ISC-owned tracks. In 2006, AAA's foray into racing expanded when it made a three-year commitment to sponsor Roush Racing's number 6 car on the NASCAR Nextel Circuit.

Members belong to one of 69 individual clubs , and the clubs in turn own AAA. The number of local clubs has decreased over time through consolidation; as late as the 1970s the membership roster included dozens of clubs that each served a single county, particularly in New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania. 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.

The vast majority of AAA clubs have "AAA" as part of their name, although the two largest AAA clubs by membership do not: the Automobile Club of Southern California and Auto Club South.

From the standpoint of the consumer, AAA clubs primarily provide emergency road services to members. These services, which include towing, lockouts, winching, tire changes, automotive first aid, battery replacement, and others, are handled by private local towing companies contracted by a state AAA club. AAA sells roadside assistance for a variety of motor vehicles, including motorcycles. In some areas, AAA also offers bicycle roadside assistance. Many AAA clubs have an automotive fleet division serving large metro areas, while private towing companies cover the surplus call volume by area. Recently, certain clubs have implemented an "on the go" diagnostic/installation automotive battery program.

Clubs also distribute road maps (including customized map guides for specific journeys, branded as  and travel publications , and rate restaurants and hotels according to a "diamond" scale (one to five). The best hotels and restaurants according to AAA's criteria receive the Five Diamond Award. Many offices sell automobile liability insurance, provide travel agency, auto-registration and notary services. Maps, TourBook guides, and travel agent services are generally free to members. AAA also offers member discounts through its "AAA Discounts & Rewards" program.

AAA is authorized by the U.S. Department of State to issue International Driving Permits in the United States, along with the National Automobile Club.

The AAA has weighed in over the years on numerous issues impacting motorists.

The AAA is known for occasional high profile motorist advisories of traffic enforcement, such as when it rented a billboard to warn motorists of the speed trap town of Lawtey, Florida. It also is a supporter of the Motor Vehicle Owners' Right to Repair Act, first introduced in 2001 but which has not become law.

Additionally, the AAA supported measures that tax motorists -- with the goal of strengthening infrastructure and highway maintenance -- as well as supported measures that make the roadways safer for all motorists:

• Virginia's now-repealed traffic citation tax because of its revenue generation potential.
• The federal 55 mph speed limit.
• Opposing a 70 mph speed limit on Illinois rural freeways even though the roads can safely accommodate that speed.
• Supporting red light cameras.
• Lobbied in favor of speed cameras in Maryland in 2002, several years before they were actually authorized. Provisionally supporting the expansion of speed cameras in Maryland in 2009,^[48] and opposing the repeal of speed cameras in Maryland in 2013.
• Lobbied in favor of authorizing speed cameras in Indiana.
• Supporting an increase in the federal gas tax, and supporting gas tax increases at the state level such as in Virginia in 2012.
• Opposing Illinois increasing its rural speed limit from 65 to 70 mph.
• Proposing the creation of a Vehicle miles traveled tax in Idaho
• Opposing the raising of tolls on bridges and tunnels in the New York Metropolitan Area.