Otter, KS truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Otter: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Otter and Cowley County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Cowley County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
4 of 200 truck crashes since 2015.
Deadliest roads
No fatal large-truck crashes with a road name recorded here since 2015.
How Cowley County compares with Kansas
Cowley County against Kansas and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Cowley County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Cowley County | Kansas | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 52.1 | 61.4 | 49.7 | 15% below the state |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 3.6 | 4.8 | 3.4 | 25% below the state |
| Injuries per crash | 0.24 | 0.32 | 0.49 | 25% below the state |
| Garbage-truck share | 2.0% | 2.1% | 2.3% | same |
| On snow, slush or ice | 5.1% | 9.3% | 6.2% | 45% below the state |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 22.4% | 23.1% | 23.7% | same |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 12.2% | 15.2% | 13.8% | 19% below the state |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 43.4% | 42.2% | 41.9% | same |
| After dark | 16.3% | 23.2% | 24.8% | 30% below the state |
Cowley County sits below Kansas on crashes per 100k residents / yr, deaths per 100 crashes and injuries per crash.
What stands out in Cowley County: 5.1% share of truck crashes on snow, slush or ice (Kansas: 9.3%).
Overview
Cowley County has recorded 200 truck crashes since 2015, with 50 people injured and 7 killed.
Across the years with complete reporting, that is roughly one truck crash every 20 days.
Otter had 0 reported truck crashes since 2015, too few for reliable patterns, so the charts and findings on this page use Cowley County numbers.
64% of truck crash reports in Cowley County since 2015 leave the city field blank; place counts include only reports that name the place.
When crashes happen
December has the most truck crashes, 11.0% of the yearly total, while February has the fewest (5.5%).
November through March accounts for 43.4% of truck crashes here, compared with 42.2% in Kansas.
The busiest hour is 10–11 am, with 11.0% of truck crashes.
Road surface: 5.1% of truck crashes were on snow, slush or ice (Kansas: 9.3%).
Where crashes happen
Since 2015, no fatal large-truck crashes with a location were recorded within 10 miles of Otter.
Garbage & waste trucks
4 crashes involved a garbage or refuse truck, a 2.0% share (Kansas: 2.1%).
Route planning tips for Otter fleets
- Review driver schedules for December, the month with the most truck crashes.
- Use the free Route Planner to score your route and spot low bridges before drivers head out.
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 Cowley County
By hour of day
Most dangerous roads for trucks
No fatal crashes involving a large truck with a road name were recorded within 10 miles since 2015.
Roads named most in all truck crash reports
| Road | Truck crashes since 2015 (Cowley County) |
|---|---|
| Summit | 8 |
| 202Nd | 6 |
| 21St | 6 |
| Chestnut | 5 |
| 32Nd | 5 |
| 92Nd | 3 |
| 71St | 3 |
| 101St | 2 |
Otter at a glance
| Population | 32 |
| Land area | 51.8 sq mi |
| Density | 1 per sq mi |
| Median household income (ZIP 67024) | $34,231 |
Waste facilities and haulers nearby
Historical data: truck crashes in Cowley 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 | 13 | — | 0.7 |
| 2000s | 12 | -8% | 0.5 |
| 2010s | 18 | +46% | 0.5 |
| 2020s | 17 | -4% | 1.0 |
In the 1990s about 13 truck crashes a year were reported; in the 2020s, about 17. Reporting coverage also changed between these periods. NHTSA counts 0.5 fatal large-truck crashes a year in 2016–19 and 1.0 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Otter
How many truck crashes happen in Otter?
Cowley County has had 200 reported truck crashes since 2015, injuring 50 people and killing 7.
Which month has the most truck crashes in Otter?
The worst month is December: 11.0% of truck crashes in Cowley County happen then.
How many garbage truck crashes are there in Otter?
Since 2015, Cowley County has reported 4 garbage-truck crashes, or 2.0% of its truck crashes.
What is the truck crash rate in Otter compared with Kansas?
Per 100,000 residents, Cowley County has 52.1 truck crashes a year; Kansas has 61.4.
How can I plan a safer truck route in Otter?
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.