AMERICA'S ONLY ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY AUTO CLUB
24/7 NATIONWIDE ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE FOR CARS AND BIKES
BETTER WORLD CLUB NEWS
AAA Oregon/Idaho Takes One More Small Step for Bike-Kind
We’re Still Waiting on the Giant Leap
Heck, We’re Still Waiting for Real Coverage Beyond Oregon and Southern Idaho
Back in 2009, we
congratulated AAA’s Oregon/Idaho office for following our lead in
offering bicycle roadside assistance. They were 6 years late to the
party, but hey - at least one region got there eventually.
Unfortunately, their bike membership clause looked like it had been
hammered out by a team of lawyers who moonlighted as accountants.
Coverage was limited to Oregon and Southern Idaho, and only Premium
members were eligible.
As of May 2012, they’re allowing Basic members access to their bike
assistance - although coverage is still limited to Oregon and Idaho. Two
more AAA regions have technically begun offering bike assistance: AAA
Mountain West and AAA South Jersey. The catch? It's only available for
student members between 17 and 25.
It looks like that obfuscation team is still earning its keep. In Oregon
and Idaho, cyclists under a Basic plan will be transported:
“Back to the station that dispatched transportation service or any point
of choice along the direct return route, or to any point of safety
within the city of the station providing transportation service, or to
any point of safety within a 3-mile radius in Oregon and 10-mile radius
in the southern 34 counties of Idaho, of the bicycle breakdown.” - Oregon AAA website
Got that? Know which county you’re broken down in? Know where your tower
is going to be dispatched from? Know what a “point of safety” means to
the AAA legal team?
Neither do we. And while we think it’s beyond awesome that bikes are
gaining recognition as a valid form of transport, we’re still watching
as AAA opposes cyclists’ rights in California. There’s also their long history of anti-environmentalism and highway lobbying that isn’t going to be greenwashed away.
Better World Club’s bike coverage takes you anywhere you need to go
within 30 miles. Period. AAA members have to purchase auto coverage to
be eligible for bicycle assistance; we have a bike-only plan. Our
coverage is nation-wide. And not to ring our own bell, but we’ve been
advocates for environmental progress and cyclists' rights (and stood up
to AAA when they weren’t) for a decade now. We’d love to welcome AAA to
the world of socially-responsible, green business – but they still have a
long road ahead.
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