Lester, IA truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Lester: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Lester and Lyon County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Lyon County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
0 of 147 truck crashes since 2015.
Deadliest roads
How Lyon County compares with Iowa
Lyon County against Iowa and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Lyon County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Lyon County | Iowa | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 98.4 | 68.1 | 49.7 | 1.4× the state |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 4.5 | 3.5 | 3.4 | 1.3× the state |
| Injuries per crash | 0.59 | 0.41 | 0.49 | 1.4× the state |
| Garbage-truck share | 0.0% | 2.2% | 2.3% | 100% below the state |
| On snow, slush or ice | 22.4% | 18.7% | 6.2% | 1.2× the state |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 24.6% | 24.0% | 23.7% | same |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 13.4% | 15.1% | 13.8% | 11% below the state |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 47.0% | 45.4% | 41.9% | same |
| After dark | 11.9% | 23.1% | 24.8% | 48% below the state |
Lyon County sits below Iowa on garbage-truck share, in rain, sleet or snow and after dark. It runs above Iowa on crashes per 100k residents / yr, deaths per 100 crashes and injuries per crash.
The headline for Lyon County: 0 crashes involve a garbage truck (0 since 2015), vs 2.2% across Iowa.
Overview
Since 2015, 147 crashes involving commercial trucks have been reported in Lyon County. They injured 83 people and killed 7.
That averages about one truck crash every 30 days in fully reported years.
Only 1 truck crash was reported in Lester since 2015; patterns below come from Lyon County as a whole.
69% of truck crash reports in Lyon County since 2015 leave the city field blank; place counts include only reports that name the place.
When crashes happen
Truck crashes peak in December (11.6% of the year) and are lowest in April (2.7%).
The five winter months (November to March) hold 47.0% of truck crashes, against 45.4% across Iowa.
More truck crashes happen at 8–9 am than at any other hour (10.9%).
22.4% of truck crashes here happened on snow, slush or ice, against 18.7% across Iowa.
Where crashes happen
Fatal large-truck crashes within 10 miles of Lester since 2015 were spread across roads: SR-182 (1) and US-75 (1).
Garbage & waste trucks
Since 2015, no garbage-truck crashes were reported for Lyon County.
Route planning tips for Lester fleets
- Build extra time into December routes: it has the most truck crashes here.
- 22.4% of truck crashes were on snow, slush or ice, above Iowa; plan winter equipment checks before the season.
- Paste your stops into the free Route Planner to see the risk score, safer alternatives and low bridges.
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 Lyon County
By hour of day
Most dangerous roads for trucks
| Road | Fatal truck crashes since 2015 (within 10 miles) |
|---|---|
| SR-182 | 1 |
| US-75 | 1 |
Roads named most in all truck crash reports
| Road | Truck crashes since 2015 (Lyon County) |
|---|---|
| US-75 | 7 |
| State 9/Iowa 9 | 5 |
| Ia 9 | 4 |
| Us 75 And A034/210Th St | 3 |
| State 182/Iowa 182 | 3 |
| Ia 182 | 3 |
| A052/260Th St | 3 |
| 110Th St | 2 |
Lester at a glance
| Population | 309 |
| Land area | 1.8 sq mi |
| Density | 169 per sq mi |
| Median household income (ZIP 51242) | $95,625 |
| Median home value (ZIP 51242) | $204,181 |
Waste facilities and haulers nearby
Historical data: truck crashes in Lyon 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 | 3 | — | 0.1 |
| 2000s | 5 | +72% | 0.2 |
| 2010s | 13 | +143% | 0.6 |
| 2020s | 11 | -16% | 0.4 |
In the 1990s about 3 truck crashes a year were reported; in the 2020s, about 11. Reporting coverage also changed between these periods. Fatal large-truck crashes: 0.8 a year in 2016–19, 0.4 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Lester
How many truck crashes happen in Lester?
147 truck crashes have been reported in Lyon County since 2015, with 7 deaths and 83 injuries.
What is the worst month for truck crashes in Lester?
Truck crashes in Lyon County peak in December, with 11.6% of the year's crashes.
How many garbage truck crashes are there in Lester?
Garbage trucks were involved in 0 reported crashes in Lyon County since 2015 (0.0% of truck crashes).
What is the truck crash rate in Lester compared with Iowa?
Per 100,000 residents, Lyon County has 98.4 truck crashes a year; Iowa has 68.1.
How do I plan a garbage truck route in Lester?
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.