Waterloo, KS truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Waterloo: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Waterloo and Lyon County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Lyon County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
9 of 459 truck crashes since 2015.
Deadliest roads
How Lyon County compares with Kansas
Lyon County against Kansas and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Lyon County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Lyon County | Kansas | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 119.9 | 61.4 | 49.7 | 2.0× the state |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 3.3 | 4.8 | 3.4 | 31% below the state |
| Injuries per crash | 0.25 | 0.32 | 0.49 | 22% below the state |
| Garbage-truck share | 1.4% | 2.1% | 2.3% | 33% below the state |
| On snow, slush or ice | 16.3% | 9.3% | 6.2% | 1.8× the state |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 21.7% | 23.1% | 23.7% | same |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 24.2% | 15.2% | 13.8% | 1.6× the state |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 50.6% | 42.2% | 41.9% | 1.2× the state |
| After dark | 26.8% | 23.2% | 24.8% | 1.2× the state |
Compared with Kansas, Lyon County is lower on deaths per 100 crashes, injuries per crash and garbage-truck share. It stands out for higher crashes per 100k residents / yr, on snow, slush or ice and in rain, sleet or snow.
What stands out in Lyon County: January worst month: 16.6% of truck crashes, vs 8.3% in an average month.
Overview
Police reported 459 crashes involving commercial trucks in Lyon County since 2015: 112 people were injured and 14 were killed.
That averages about one truck crash every 9 days in fully reported years.
Only 0 truck crashes were reported in Waterloo since 2015; patterns below come from Lyon County as a whole.
62% of truck crash reports in Lyon 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 (16.6% of the year) and are lowest in May (5.4%).
The five winter months (November to March) hold 50.6% of truck crashes, against 42.2% across Kansas.
More truck crashes happen at 12–1 pm than at any other hour (8.7%).
Road surface: 16.3% of truck crashes were on snow, slush or ice (Kansas: 9.3%).
Where crashes happen
Since 2015, fatal crashes with a large truck within 10 miles of Waterloo happened on US-56 (1); no road leads clearly.
Garbage & waste trucks
9 crashes involved a garbage or refuse truck, a 2.0% share (Kansas: 2.1%).
Route planning tips for Waterloo fleets
- Review driver schedules for January, the month with the most truck crashes.
- With 16.3% of truck crashes on snow, slush or ice (above Kansas), plan winter equipment checks early.
- 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 Lyon County
By hour of day
Most dangerous roads for trucks
| Road | Fatal truck crashes since 2015 (within 10 miles) |
|---|---|
| US-56 | 1 |
Roads named most in all truck crash reports
| Road | Truck crashes since 2015 (Lyon County) |
|---|---|
| I-035 | 157 |
| I-335 | 71 |
| I335Kta | 16 |
| I-35 | 10 |
| I035Kta | 10 |
| Road Y5 | 6 |
| South | 6 |
| Weaver | 5 |
Waterloo at a glance
| Population | 242 |
| Land area | 59.2 sq mi |
| Density | 4 per sq mi |
| Median household income (ZIP 66830) | $57,109 |
Waste facilities and haulers nearby
Historical data: truck crashes in Lyon 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 | 26 | — | 1.1 |
| 2000s | 30 | +17% | 1.4 |
| 2010s | 29 | -3% | 0.8 |
| 2020s | 47 | +59% | 1.4 |
Reported truck crashes averaged 26 a year in the 1990s and 47 a year in the 2020s. Reporting practices changed over time, so part of any change can come from reporting. Fatal large-truck crashes: 0.8 a year in 2016–19, 1.4 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Waterloo
How many truck crashes happen in Waterloo?
Lyon County has had 459 reported truck crashes since 2015, injuring 112 people and killing 14.
Which month has the most truck crashes in Waterloo?
January has the most truck crashes in Lyon County, 16.6% of the yearly total.
Are garbage truck crashes common in Waterloo?
9 crashes involving garbage or refuse trucks have been reported in Lyon County since 2015, 2.0% of all truck crashes.
How do truck crashes in Waterloo compare with Kansas?
Lyon County records 119.9 truck crashes per 100,000 residents a year, against 61.4 across Kansas.
What is the best way to plan truck routes in Waterloo?
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.