Potter Valley, CA truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Potter Valley: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Potter Valley and Mendocino County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Mendocino County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
5 of 543 truck crashes since 2015.
Deadliest roads
How Mendocino County compares with California
Mendocino County against California and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Mendocino County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Mendocino County | California | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 53.4 | 33.2 | 49.7 | 1.6× the state |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 5.5 | 3.6 | 3.4 | 1.5× the state |
| Injuries per crash | 0.42 | 0.44 | 0.49 | same |
| Garbage-truck share | 0.8% | 1.6% | 2.3% | 54% below the state |
| On snow, slush or ice | 2.7% | 0.9% | 6.2% | 2.9× the state |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 27.1% | 23.5% | 23.7% | 1.2× the state |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 15.8% | 6.5% | 13.8% | 2.4× the state |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 38.4% | 40.2% | 41.9% | same |
| After dark | 22.7% | 29.1% | 24.8% | 22% below the state |
Compared with California, Mendocino County is lower on garbage-truck share and after dark. Where it is higher: crashes per 100k residents / yr, deaths per 100 crashes and on snow, slush or ice.
Mendocino County at a glance: 2.7% share of truck crashes on snow, slush or ice (California: 0.9%).
Overview
Since 2015, 543 crashes involving commercial trucks have been reported in Mendocino County. They injured 228 people and killed 31.
That averages about one truck crash every 8 days in fully reported years.
Only 0 truck crashes were reported in Potter Valley since 2015; patterns below come from Mendocino County as a whole.
When crashes happen
Truck crashes peak in October (10.9% of the year) and are lowest in April (6.3%).
November through March accounts for 38.4% of truck crashes here, compared with 40.2% in California.
The busiest hour is 8–9 am, with 9.4% of truck crashes.
Snow, slush or ice was on the road in 2.7% of truck crashes, compared with 0.9% in California.
Where crashes happen
Since 2015, fatal crashes with a large truck within 10 miles of Potter Valley happened on SR-20 (3); no road leads clearly.
Garbage & waste trucks
5 crashes involved a garbage or refuse truck, a 0.9% share (California: 1.6%).
Route planning tips for Potter Valley fleets
- Build extra time into October routes: it has the most truck crashes here.
- 27.1% of truck crashes happen between 6 and 10 am, above California; consider earlier or later starts where possible.
- With 2.7% of truck crashes on snow, slush or ice (above California), plan winter equipment checks early.
- Check your own stops for crash hotspots and low bridges with the free Route Planner.
About the data
Crash counts come from the FMCSA crash file (police-reported crashes involving trucks over 10,000 lb); fatal-crash locations come from NHTSA FARS. Text on this page states only what these numbers show.
Truck crashes by year: all trucks vs garbage trucks
Seasonality: when trucks crash in Mendocino County
By hour of day
Most dangerous roads for trucks
| Road | Fatal truck crashes since 2015 (within 10 miles) |
|---|---|
| SR-20 | 3 |
Roads named most in all truck crash reports
| Road | Truck crashes since 2015 (Mendocino County) |
|---|---|
| US-101 | 12 |
| SR-1 | 5 |
| SR-162 | 3 |
| SR-128 | 3 |
| Rt20/.3M E Rd 144 | 3 |
| N State St/.1M N Pomo Dr | 2 |
| Orr Springs Rd/2.3Mi W Of Pinoleville Rd | 2 |
| Rt1/.51M S Navarro Bluff Rd | 2 |
Potter Valley at a glance
| Land area | 4.0 sq mi |
| Median household income (ZIP 95469) | $82,683 |
| Median home value (ZIP 95469) | $511,299 |
Waste facilities and haulers nearby
Historical data: truck crashes in Mendocino County since the 1990s
Combines the FMCSA crash file (all reported truck crashes, real coverage from about 1990) with NHTSA FARS (fatal crashes involving a large truck, 1982–2024).
| Decade | Truck crashes / yr | Change | Fatal crashes / yr (FARS) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | — | — | 4.2 |
| 2000s | 35 | — | 2.7 |
| 2010s | 42 | +18% | 2.1 |
| 2020s | 50 | +19% | 2.8 |
In the 2000s about 35 truck crashes a year were reported; in the 2020s, about 50. Reporting coverage also changed between these periods. Fatal large-truck crashes: 3.0 a year in 2016–19, 2.8 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Potter Valley
How many truck accidents are there in Potter Valley?
Since 2015, 543 crashes involving commercial trucks were reported in Mendocino County (228 injured, 31 killed).
When do most truck crashes happen in Potter Valley?
Truck crashes in Mendocino County peak in October, with 10.9% of the year's crashes.
Are garbage truck crashes common in Potter Valley?
Garbage trucks were involved in 5 reported crashes in Mendocino County since 2015 (0.9% of truck crashes).
How does Potter Valley compare with California for truck crashes?
The yearly rate is 53.4 truck crashes per 100,000 residents in Mendocino County, vs 33.2 for California.
How do I plan a garbage truck route in Potter Valley?
The free Route Planner takes your stops and returns a route risk score, safer alternatives and low-bridge warnings.
2026 is a partial year. Updated October 2026.