Roadside assistance for bicyclists
I heard a rumor a while ago that AAA (the American Automobile Association) has started offering roadside assistance to bicyclists. Provided the bicyclist is a AAA member, of course. This morning, I finally remembered to do a search to see if there was any truth to this rumor.
There is, actually. (Why would I be writing if there wasn’t?) The AAA club for Oregon and southern Idaho now includes “Bicycle Service” which provides transportation of the AAA member (and the member’s disabled bicycle) to any point of safety within a 25 mile radius of the bicycle breakdown. There are a couple important limitations, however. The service is only available in Oregon and Idaho and then only if you have a “Plus” AAA membership or better and also anybody riding with the AAA Plus member is out of luck.
Here’s a description of the service:
While I was searching for information about this new AAA service, I came across the Better World Club. Like AAA, they provide nationwide automobile roadside assistance to its members. Their website claims they are the nation’s only environmentally friendly auto club and they donate 1% of their annual revenues toward environmental cleanup and advocacy. A basic Better World Club membership costs $53.95 annually (plus a one-time $12 sign-up fee for new members) and includes:
eco-travel services, Discounts on hybrid cars, insurance Services, Free Maps, Auto Maintenance discounts and bicycle roadside assistance.
Wow. I like the sounds of all that! Better World Club started providing roadside assistance to its bicycling members six years ago. And, their service is available nationwide! They even offer a bicycle-only membership ($39.95 per year). Here’s a page describing the details on their bicycle assistance plan:


Comments(1)





Peter,
This past summer I paid 300$US each way for Delta to carry my bike from State College, PA to Venice Italy ($600 total). Last summer when I returned from Munich the agent charged me $120 which was the first time I ever paid for bike on international trip when the bike box constituted one of my 2 checked bags (recycled cardboard factory to dealer box and weighing less than 50lb). So I was intrigued by the info and checked out link on Better World Club for a shipping service and found that it would cost approximately $1200 to ship my bike to Venice and return using the service. Now I would not have to lug it to the airport and it could be delivered to hotel near Venice or bike shop to await my arrival but double what Delta charged me….
Anyway thought you might find this interesting and let me know when you would like pointers on European touring. It is mind boggling!! Search me out on facebook and check a few pictures.
Regards,
Joe