Palos Heights, IL truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Palos Heights: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Palos Heights 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 sits below Illinois on crashes per 100k residents / yr, deaths per 100 crashes and on snow, slush or ice.
What stands out in Palos Heights: 1.6× fatal truck crashes within 10 miles of Palos Heights per year, 2020–24 vs 2016–19 (11.0 vs 6.8).
Overview
Police reported 29,495 crashes involving commercial trucks in Cook County since 2015: 15,477 people were injured and 367 were killed.
In complete reporting years that works out to about 7 truck crashes a day.
Palos Heights had 0 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
The worst month is June with 9.3% of truck crashes; the quietest is April at 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
I-294 leads within 10 miles of Palos Heights with 14 fatal crashes involving a large truck since 2015. It is followed by I-57 (8), I-80 (7) and I-55 (5).
Garbage & waste trucks
425 crashes involved a garbage or refuse truck, a 1.4% share (Illinois: 1.4%).
The most garbage-truck crashes happen in May (11%).
They recorded 0.2 deaths per 100 crashes, against 1.3 for all trucks.
Route planning tips for Palos Heights fleets
- Plan June schedules with more margin; it is the worst month for truck crashes in Cook County.
- Where you can, review stops along I-294; it has the most fatal large-truck crashes nearby.
- Waste haulers: May is the peak month for garbage-truck crashes in Cook County.
- Check your own stops for crash hotspots and low bridges with the free Route Planner.
About the data
Sources: the FMCSA crash file for all reported truck crashes and NHTSA FARS for fatal crashes with a large truck. Every statement here comes straight from those numbers.
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 | 14 |
| I-57 | 8 |
| I-80 | 7 |
| I-55 | 5 |
| SR-83 | 5 |
| SR-43 | 4 |
| SR-50 | 4 |
| 87th St | 3 |
| US-6 | 3 |
| Western Ave | 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 |
Palos Heights at a glance
| Population | 12,088 |
| Land area | 3.8 sq mi |
| Density | 3,197 per sq mi |
| Median household income (ZIP 60463) | $107,977 |
| Median home value (ZIP 60463) | $360,881 |
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. Fatal crashes involving a large truck averaged 27.0 a year in 2016–19 and 37.4 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Palos Heights
How many truck crashes happen in Palos Heights?
Cook County has had 29,495 reported truck crashes since 2015, injuring 15,477 people and killing 367.
Which road has the most fatal truck crashes in Palos Heights?
NHTSA data shows I-294 with 14 fatal large-truck crashes within 10 miles of Palos Heights since 2015, the highest of any road.
Which month has the most truck crashes in Palos Heights?
Truck crashes in Cook County peak in June, with 9.3% of the year's crashes.
Are garbage truck crashes common in Palos Heights?
Garbage trucks were involved in 425 reported crashes in Cook County since 2015 (1.4% of truck crashes).
What is the truck crash rate in Palos Heights compared with Illinois?
Per 100,000 residents, Cook County has 49.0 truck crashes a year; Illinois has 56.0.
How can I plan a safer truck route in Palos Heights?
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.