Delaware, IN truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Delaware: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Delaware and Ripley County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Ripley County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
20 of 320 truck crashes since 2015.
Deadliest roads
How Ripley County compares with Indiana
Ripley County against Indiana and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Ripley County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Ripley County | Indiana | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 94.0 | 80.8 | 49.7 | 1.2× the state |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 4.6 | 2.9 | 3.4 | 1.6× the state |
| Injuries per crash | 0.36 | 0.36 | 0.49 | same |
| Garbage-truck share | 6.3% | 2.4% | 2.3% | 2.7× the state |
| On snow, slush or ice | 7.0% | 10.6% | 6.2% | 34% below the state |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 26.8% | 22.4% | 23.7% | 1.2× the state |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 14.6% | 17.4% | 13.8% | 16% below the state |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 42.4% | 42.7% | 41.9% | same |
| After dark | 25.8% | 32.0% | 24.8% | 19% below the state |
Ripley County has lower values than Indiana for on snow, slush or ice, in rain, sleet or snow and after dark. It runs above Indiana on crashes per 100k residents / yr, deaths per 100 crashes and garbage-truck share.
The headline for Ripley County: 1 in 16 garbage-truck share of crashes is 6.3%, against 2.4% for Indiana.
Overview
Police reported 320 crashes involving commercial trucks in Ripley County since 2015: 114 people were injured and 15 were killed.
In complete reporting years that works out to about one truck crash every 13 days.
Delaware had 2 reported truck crashes since 2015, too few for reliable patterns, so the charts and findings on this page use Ripley County numbers.
When crashes happen
The worst month is February with 12.5% of truck crashes; the quietest is September at 6.6%.
November through March accounts for 42.4% of truck crashes here, compared with 42.7% in Indiana.
The busiest hour is 7–8 am, with 8.1% of truck crashes.
Road surface: 7.0% of truck crashes were on snow, slush or ice (Indiana: 10.6%).
Where crashes happen
US-421 leads within 10 miles of Delaware with 3 fatal crashes involving a large truck since 2015. It is followed by SR-129 (2), SR-350 (1) and SR-48E (1).
Garbage & waste trucks
Garbage trucks account for 20 of the truck crashes here, or 6.2%, compared with 2.4% in Indiana.
Their busiest month is November, with 20% of garbage-truck crashes.
Route planning tips for Delaware fleets
- Review driver schedules for February, the month with the most truck crashes.
- Look at alternatives to US-421 at busy times: it leads this area in fatal truck crashes.
- For residential and commercial waste routes, look again at November schedules: garbage-truck crashes peak then.
- Morning starts matter: 26.8% of truck crashes fall between 6 and 10 am, higher than Indiana.
- 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 Ripley County
By hour of day
Most dangerous roads for trucks
| Road | Fatal truck crashes since 2015 (within 10 miles) |
|---|---|
| US-421 | 3 |
| SR-129 | 2 |
| SR-350 | 1 |
| SR-48E | 1 |
| US-50 | 1 |
| Us- 421 | 1 |
| Us- 50 | 1 |
Roads named most in all truck crash reports
| Road | Truck crashes since 2015 (Ripley County) |
|---|---|
| I-74 | 44 |
| US-50 | 32 |
| US-421 | 20 |
| US-50W | 19 |
| US-421N | 12 |
| US-50E | 10 |
| US-421S | 9 |
| I-74W | 9 |
Delaware at a glance
| Population | 1,523 |
| Land area | 1.8 sq mi |
| Density | 842 per sq mi |
Waste facilities and haulers nearby
Historical data: truck crashes in Ripley 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 | 10 | — | 1.3 |
| 2000s | 19 | +88% | 0.6 |
| 2010s | 26 | +34% | 0.7 |
| 2020s | 25 | -3% | 1.4 |
From the 1990s to the 2020s, yearly reported truck crashes went from 10 to 25. Some of the change may reflect how crashes were reported. Fatal large-truck crashes: 0.8 a year in 2016–19, 1.4 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Delaware
How many truck crashes happen in Delaware?
Ripley County has had 320 reported truck crashes since 2015, injuring 114 people and killing 15.
Where do fatal truck crashes happen most in Delaware?
Since 2015, US-421 has had the most fatal large-truck crashes within 10 miles of Delaware: 3.
What is the worst month for truck crashes in Delaware?
The worst month is February: 12.5% of truck crashes in Ripley County happen then.
Are garbage truck crashes common in Delaware?
20 crashes involving garbage or refuse trucks have been reported in Ripley County since 2015, 6.2% of all truck crashes.
How do truck crashes in Delaware compare with Indiana?
The yearly rate is 94.0 truck crashes per 100,000 residents in Ripley County, vs 80.8 for Indiana.
How can I plan a safer truck route in Delaware?
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.