Oak Lawn, IL truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Oak Lawn: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Oak Lawn and Cook County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Cook County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
0.2 deaths per 100 garbage-truck crashes vs 1.3 for all trucks.
Deadliest roads
How Cook County compares with Illinois
Cook County against Illinois and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Cook County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Cook County | Illinois | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 49.0 | 56.0 | 49.7 | 12% below the state |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 1.3 | 2.6 | 3.4 | 50% below the state |
| Injuries per crash | 0.53 | 0.50 | 0.49 | same |
| Garbage-truck share | 1.4% | 1.4% | 2.3% | same |
| On snow, slush or ice | 5.7% | 9.0% | 6.2% | 37% below the state |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 24.5% | 24.3% | 23.7% | same |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 16.7% | 17.9% | 13.8% | same |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 40.6% | 42.0% | 41.9% | same |
| After dark | 24.0% | 24.1% | 24.8% | same |
Cook County has lower values than Illinois for crashes per 100k residents / yr, deaths per 100 crashes and on snow, slush or ice.
Oak Lawn at a glance: I-294 15 fatal truck crashes since 2015, more than any other road within 10 miles of Oak Lawn.
Overview
Since 2015, 29,495 crashes involving commercial trucks have been reported in Cook County. They injured 15,477 people and killed 367.
In complete reporting years that works out to about 7 truck crashes a day.
Oak Lawn had 143 reported truck crashes since 2015, too few for reliable patterns, so the charts and findings on this page use Cook County numbers.
When crashes happen
Truck crashes peak in June (9.3% of the year) and are lowest in April (7.4%).
The five winter months (November to March) hold 40.6% of truck crashes, against 42.0% across Illinois.
More truck crashes happen at 8–9 am than at any other hour (7.2%).
5.7% of truck crashes here happened on snow, slush or ice, against 9.0% across Illinois.
Where crashes happen
The deadliest road for trucks within 10 miles of Oak Lawn is I-294, with 15 fatal large-truck crashes since 2015. It is followed by I-55 (11), SR-50 (9) and I-57 (6).
Garbage & waste trucks
Garbage and refuse trucks were involved in 425 crashes, 1.4% of the total, against 1.4% across Illinois.
Garbage-truck crashes peak in May (11% of them).
Deaths per 100 garbage-truck crashes: 0.2, vs 1.3 for all truck crashes.
Route planning tips for Oak Lawn fleets
- Build extra time into June routes: it has the most truck crashes here.
- Check whether your routes use I-294, the road with the most fatal truck crashes in this area.
- Garbage-truck crashes here peak in May; review collection routes for that month.
- Paste your stops into the free Route Planner to see the risk score, safer alternatives and low bridges.
About the data
This report uses the FMCSA crash file (reported crashes of trucks over 10,000 lb) and NHTSA FARS (fatal crashes). It reports the numbers without guessing at reasons.
Truck crashes by year: all trucks vs garbage trucks
Seasonality: when trucks crash in Cook County
By hour of day
Most dangerous roads for trucks
| Road | Fatal truck crashes since 2015 (within 10 miles) |
|---|---|
| I-294 | 15 |
| I-55 | 11 |
| SR-50 | 9 |
| I-57 | 6 |
| SR-43 | 6 |
| I-94 | 5 |
| SR-83 | 5 |
| Western Ave | 4 |
| 87th St | 3 |
| Pulaski Rd | 3 |
Roads named most in all truck crash reports
| Road | Truck crashes since 2015 (Cook County) |
|---|---|
| I-294 | 2,877 |
| I-90 | 989 |
| I-94 | 802 |
| I-290 | 473 |
| I-55 | 458 |
| I-80 | 348 |
| S Cicero Ave | 339 |
| I-57 | 296 |
Oak Lawn at a glance
| Population | 56,531 |
| Land area | 8.6 sq mi |
| Density | 6,596 per sq mi |
| Median household income (ZIP 60453) | $83,911 |
| Median home value (ZIP 60453) | $283,046 |
Waste facilities and haulers nearby
Historical data: truck crashes in Cook 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 | 1,033 | — | 42.5 |
| 2000s | 2,315 | +124% | 36.0 |
| 2010s | 2,360 | +2% | 20.9 |
| 2020s | 2,496 | +6% | 37.4 |
In the 1990s about 1,033 truck crashes a year were reported; in the 2020s, about 2,496. Reporting coverage also changed between these periods. NHTSA counts 27.0 fatal large-truck crashes a year in 2016–19 and 37.4 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Oak Lawn
How common are truck crashes in Oak Lawn?
Cook County has had 29,495 reported truck crashes since 2015, injuring 15,477 people and killing 367.
What is the most dangerous road for trucks in Oak Lawn?
Since 2015, I-294 has had the most fatal large-truck crashes within 10 miles of Oak Lawn: 15.
What is the worst month for truck crashes in Oak Lawn?
Truck crashes in Cook County peak in June, with 9.3% of the year's crashes.
How many garbage truck crashes are there in Oak Lawn?
425 crashes involving garbage or refuse trucks have been reported in Cook County since 2015, 1.4% of all truck crashes.
What is the truck crash rate in Oak Lawn compared with Illinois?
Cook County records 49.0 truck crashes per 100,000 residents a year, against 56.0 across Illinois.
What is the best way to plan truck routes in Oak Lawn?
Use the free Route Planner: enter your stops to get a risk score, safer alternatives and the low bridges on your route.
2026 is a partial year. Updated October 2026.