While most of us are ecstatic now that the snow has melted and year's first 70-degree temperature is arriving today, perhaps nobody is breathing a deeper sigh of relief than the folks at AAA.

In a winter in which the mercury fell below zero 50 times in the Twin Cities, and at one time there were 17 consecutive of temperatures with negative numbers, it shouldn't be surprising that the agency's network of tow truck drivers and road side technicians had their busiest year in three decades.

Numbers released last week by AAA Minneapolis showed that the motoring and travel club serving residents of Hennepin County and a few adjacent suburbs logged more than 50,000 calls for help between December and February , a 42 percent increase over the winter of 2012-13 and a single season record.

Phones at AAA Minnesota-Iowa rang incessantly too, with 110,000 calls during the same three-month period, said spokeswoman Gail Weinholzer. That was not a seasonal record, but the agency did have a single day record for service calls on Jan. 7 when it received 3,000 calls. That smashed the previous record of 2,500 on Feb. 7, 2005.

"Actually cold, snowy winters allow us to demonstrate our value to our members," said Gail Weinholzer of AAA Minnesota-Iowa. "Of course, the extreme days are hard on our employees just as they are on our members."

With the "polar vortex" that settled over the Upper Midwest, naturally battery-related issues were the No. 1 reason drivers called for help. They accounted for 36 percent of the calls, followed by 30 percent for tows and 10 percent for flat tires, said Jamie Christianson, a AAA Minneapolis spokeswoman.

Extrications accounted for another 10 percent as did lockouts. Calls for drivers who ran out of fuel accounted for 1 percent, she said.

"We also celebrate our Emergency Road Service team and facilities network for their Herculean efforts and hard work," said Wendy Weigel, acting president and CEO of AAA Minneapolis.

Call volumes have dropped of a bit over the past few weeks, said Jamie Christianson, AAA Minneapolis spokeswoman.

"You can tell the air seems lighter around here," she said. "We were able to serve all our members, and we feel pretty good, But yes, there is a collective sigh of relief."

Weinholzer said AAA Minnesota won't be resting even with the arrival of summer.

"We do receive many calls from members as well during the summer for extreme heat effects on vehicles, in addition to the usual lock outs and flat tires," she said. "There is no time of year an AAA membership isn't of value

Photo credit: AAA Minneapolis