Walnut, IA truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Walnut: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Walnut and Pottawattamie County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Pottawattamie County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
15 of 1,310 truck crashes since 2015.
Deadliest roads
How Pottawattamie County compares with Iowa
Pottawattamie County against Iowa and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Pottawattamie County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Pottawattamie County | Iowa | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 118.3 | 68.1 | 49.7 | 1.7× the state |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 2.1 | 3.5 | 3.4 | 40% below the state |
| Injuries per crash | 0.33 | 0.41 | 0.49 | 20% below the state |
| Garbage-truck share | 1.1% | 2.2% | 2.3% | 47% below the state |
| On snow, slush or ice | 17.5% | 18.7% | 6.2% | same |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 22.4% | 24.0% | 23.7% | same |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 17.9% | 15.1% | 13.8% | 1.2× the state |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 47.5% | 45.4% | 41.9% | same |
| After dark | 29.3% | 23.1% | 24.8% | 1.3× the state |
Pottawattamie County sits below Iowa on deaths per 100 crashes, injuries per crash and garbage-truck share. It runs above Iowa on crashes per 100k residents / yr, in rain, sleet or snow and after dark.
What stands out in Walnut: I-80 deadliest road: 4 fatal truck crashes within 10 miles of Walnut since 2015.
Overview
Since 2015, 1,310 crashes involving commercial trucks have been reported in Pottawattamie County. They injured 420 people and killed 31.
Across the years with complete reporting, that is roughly one truck crash every 3 days.
Walnut had 4 reported truck crashes since 2015, too few for reliable patterns, so the charts and findings on this page use Pottawattamie County numbers.
45% of truck crash reports in Pottawattamie County since 2015 leave the city field blank; place counts include only reports that name the place.
When crashes happen
Truck crashes peak in January (11.9% of the year) and are lowest in April (6.9%).
Winter months (Nov–Mar) carry 47.5% of truck crashes, vs 45.4% for Iowa.
More truck crashes happen at 10–11 am than at any other hour (6.6%).
Road surface: 17.5% of truck crashes were on snow, slush or ice (Iowa: 18.7%).
Where crashes happen
I-80 leads within 10 miles of Walnut with 4 fatal crashes involving a large truck since 2015. It is followed by US-59 (2) and CR-M47/510TH St (1).
Garbage & waste trucks
15 crashes involved a garbage or refuse truck, a 1.1% share (Iowa: 2.2%).
Route planning tips for Walnut fleets
- Plan January schedules with more margin; it is the worst month for truck crashes in Pottawattamie County.
- Where you can, review stops along I-80; it has the most fatal large-truck crashes nearby.
- 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 Pottawattamie County
By hour of day
Most dangerous roads for trucks
| Road | Fatal truck crashes since 2015 (within 10 miles) |
|---|---|
| I-80 | 4 |
| US-59 | 2 |
| CR-M47/510TH St | 1 |
Roads named most in all truck crash reports
| Road | Truck crashes since 2015 (Pottawattamie County) |
|---|---|
| I-80 | 62 |
| I-29 | 20 |
| Interstate 29/I 29 | 15 |
| Interstate 80/I 80 | 14 |
| US-6 | 11 |
| I-880 | 8 |
| Interstate 29/I29 Ramp | 8 |
| US-59 | 6 |
Walnut at a glance
| Population | 728 |
| Land area | 2.2 sq mi |
| Density | 331 per sq mi |
| Median household income (ZIP 51577) | $71,518 |
| Median home value (ZIP 51577) | $140,573 |
Waste facilities and haulers nearby
Historical data: truck crashes in Pottawattamie 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 | 70 | — | 2.9 |
| 2000s | 81 | +16% | 2.2 |
| 2010s | 96 | +18% | 1.7 |
| 2020s | 114 | +19% | 2.4 |
From the 1990s to the 2020s, yearly reported truck crashes went from 70 to 114. Some of the change may reflect how crashes were reported. Fatal crashes involving a large truck averaged 2.2 a year in 2016–19 and 2.4 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Walnut
How common are truck crashes in Walnut?
Since 2015, 1,310 crashes involving commercial trucks were reported in Pottawattamie County (420 injured, 31 killed).
What is the most dangerous road for trucks in Walnut?
Since 2015, I-80 has had the most fatal large-truck crashes within 10 miles of Walnut: 4.
When do most truck crashes happen in Walnut?
Truck crashes in Pottawattamie County peak in January, with 11.9% of the year's crashes.
Are garbage truck crashes common in Walnut?
Garbage trucks were involved in 15 reported crashes in Pottawattamie County since 2015 (1.1% of truck crashes).
What is the truck crash rate in Walnut compared with Iowa?
Pottawattamie County records 118.3 truck crashes per 100,000 residents a year, against 68.1 across Iowa.
How can I plan a safer truck route in Walnut?
Paste your stops into the free CurbWaste Route Planner: it scores your route against fatal-crash locations, suggests safer alternatives and flags low bridges.
2026 is a partial year. Updated October 2026.