I just read in my new (weeks old) issue of Plenty Magazine that AAA Motor Club is a bit eco-un-friendly. They write on page 15 of the Aug/Sep 2005 issue that the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Sierra Club “allege that unbeknownst to most of AAA’s 48 million members, the group has lobbied hard against auto-emissions standards, public transportation, and legislation that would cool global warming.” For example, AAA’s California branch opposed the state’s anti-global warming auto-emissions bill, and the national AAA headquarters opposed the Clean Air Act in 1990. Here’s some info I found at the NRDC’s site.

So, what can you do if you don’t like what AAA is doing, but you need that roadside assistance? Cancel AAA, letting them know very clearly why you’re leaving them, and join up with the Better World Club, an upstart founded in 2002 that offers competitive and comparable national roadside assistance and travel services. Hybridcars.com profiles them and provides a code you can use to get an additional free month of service. Confirm your existing AAA member number and they’ll waive the $10 sign-up fee.

Need one last bit of reassurance that this is a good thing to do? OK, here you go. BWC has been endorsed by Tom Magliozzi of NPR’s Car Talk. Good enough for me (if I had a car and drove).