<p>Wow, the most I’ve ever waited for AAA was 45 minutes and that was in the middle of nowhere on the 5.</p>
<p>In LA, if you break down on the freeway, you can call AAA or #399 and they will tow you off. #399 is through LA MTA I think and it’s free.</p>
<p>
Out here it’s very normal. They’re usually much later than they say they’ll be and aren’t good about informing you that they’ll be late. Keep in mind that when one refers to ‘AAA’ in this context it’s really just a dispatcher dispatching a contracted towing place - not an actual AAA company.</p>
<p>Make sure he stays safe while waiting.</p>
<p>It’s been 3 F…KING HOURS!!! Husband is on the phone from our house now trying to convince a AAA supervisor to send someone out to help our kid. Son called and his cell phone is dying and he’s starting to get panicked. He’s in the middle of no where in the dark waiting for help that should have been there an hour ago. When husband gets off the phone, I’m going to suggest that S call 911.</p>
<p>nysmile-please see post #20 PERHAPS I CAN HELP!</p>
<p>Thanks so much momof3sons. Husband just got off the phone with the supervisor from AAA. He said that a towtruck is on its way and should be there within 30 minutes. They also said that if they can’t do a quick fix on the car they are prepared to tow the car (and our son) the 2 1/2 hour trip home. We called our son back to let him know that help is finally on the way and he said that a couple of cops and firemen have stopped to chat with him. </p>
<p>Another lesson for college kids—CHARGE YOU CELL PHONE!! Son is in the middle of this emergency and he’s down to one bar on his cell phone. </p>
<p>Hopefully, AAA will come through in the end.</p>
<p>This sounds good. I’m torn between hoping for the quick fix and on the road again – or just tow it on home. Either way, he’s gonna get home before dawn!</p>
<p>I’m heading out (down the Hutch!) at the crack of dawn. Hoping when I check the board before first light I’ll hear (see?) that your son is home safe!</p>
<p>
Does he have a car charger? I buy them for emergency use like this.</p>
<p>No, he doesn’t have one and he probably should but he should have charged his cell phone overnight which he obviously didn’t. </p>
<p>Update–4 hours since his car died on the parkway. He got a tow off of the parkway where he’s been waiting 3 hours for AAA to come and help.</p>
<p>I second uscd_ucla-dad, the cigarette lighter type car charger is a must. Buy one compatible with the phone model, and have him keep it in the glove compartment. </p>
<p>Hope he’s on his way.</p>
<p>This time, I called AAA from our house to follow up on husband’s call to the AAA supervisor.</p>
<p>They put me on hold, then came back and said that the tow truck operator just spoke with my son on the phone, and the tow truck is on its way. Well, he’s been on his way since our last follow up call an hour ago.</p>
<p>Nysmile, </p>
<p>Hope all is well for your son. Sending good thoughts. And we should all write our congressmen to get these “parkway tow contracts” abolished. Sounds like typical Jersey extortion to me. “pay to play?” I’m from Jersey and this makes me very angry.</p>
<p>He’s still waiting!</p>
<p>Double standard maybe, but when my d had a flat the first thing the dispatcher asked was whether or not she felt safe in the location. The nearest police would have been dispatched to aid/wait with her so that she would not be alone.</p>
<p>Huge travel weekend, Columbus Day. Leaf-peepers, college-break folks. Hopefully AAA will get there soon!</p>
<p>I just called AAA again. This is so F-cked up!!! This time AAA said that it will be another 20 minutes. I told her that’s what my son was told over 3 hours ago. The AAA operator also said that they couldn’t find anyone to do the job. But then she followed up with “it will be another 20 minutes.” I just called Son to tell him to call 911.</p>
<p>nysmile: This situation is so frustrating and upsetting. Please let us know when your son gets home.</p>
<p>Not that it’s a help but you’ll probably get a survey card in the mail allowing you to comment on the experience.</p>
<p>AAA uses affiliates/contract towers (in addition to their own). Quality will vary, but the bad ones are quickly dropped. Unfortunately, they can’t control everything but our experience they were normally within 30 minutes of the response time they quoted when the incident was reported. I’ve waited as little as 10 minutes, as long as 3 hours.</p>
<p>Hoping to hear soon that son is safe and on his way home–I keep checking this thread for updates.</p>
<p>So, it’s been 5 1/2 hours since his car died on the parkway. Son just called and said that the AAA help just arrived and he’s going to tow the car (and our son) home. I’m sure the tow is going to cost a fortune but what the heck was the option. It took 5 1/2 hours and 6 phones calls to get AAA to help. How’s that for service? It’s about a 2-2 1/ 2 hour ride from where he is stuck to where we live on LI.</p>
<p>So much for AAA spouting off their great service.</p>
<p>It’s bad enough that our son went through this. Can you imagine if AAA had left a young woman stranded in the middle of no where at night for 5 1/2 hours?</p>
<p>What a nightmare!! Where on the Hutch was he stranded?</p>