Alton, ME truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Alton: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Alton and Penobscot County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Penobscot County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
6.1 deaths per 100 garbage-truck crashes vs 1.4 for all trucks.
Deadliest roads
No fatal large-truck crashes with a road name recorded here since 2015.
How Penobscot County compares with Maine
Penobscot County against Maine and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Penobscot County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Penobscot County | Maine | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 59.0 | 57.4 | 49.7 | same |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 1.4 | 2.6 | 3.4 | 46% below the state |
| Injuries per crash | 0.73 | 0.58 | 0.49 | 1.3× the state |
| Garbage-truck share | 3.2% | 3.4% | 2.3% | same |
| On snow, slush or ice | 24.9% | 20.2% | 6.2% | 1.2× the state |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 25.1% | 26.5% | 23.7% | same |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 23.5% | 20.8% | 13.8% | 1.1× the state |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 51.8% | 48.2% | 41.9% | 1.1× the state |
| After dark | 23.5% | 19.1% | 24.8% | 1.2× the state |
Compared with Maine, Penobscot County is lower on deaths per 100 crashes. Where it is higher: injuries per crash, on snow, slush or ice and in rain, sleet or snow.
The headline for Penobscot County: March garbage-truck crashes peak in March (24% of the year's total).
Overview
Since 2015, 1,066 crashes involving commercial trucks have been reported in Penobscot County. They injured 771 people and killed 15.
Across the years with complete reporting, that is roughly one truck crash every 4 days.
Only 8 truck crashes were reported in Alton since 2015; patterns below come from Penobscot County as a whole.
When crashes happen
Truck crashes peak in February (12.9% of the year) and are lowest in May (6.3%).
Winter months (Nov–Mar) carry 51.8% of truck crashes, vs 48.2% for Maine.
More truck crashes happen at 12–1 pm than at any other hour (8.6%).
Road surface: 24.9% of truck crashes were on snow, slush or ice (Maine: 20.2%).
Where crashes happen
Since 2015, no fatal large-truck crashes with a location were recorded within 10 miles of Alton.
Garbage & waste trucks
Garbage and refuse trucks were involved in 37 crashes, 3.5% of the total, against 3.4% across Maine.
The most garbage-truck crashes happen in March (24%).
They recorded 6.1 deaths per 100 crashes, against 1.4 for all trucks.
Route planning tips for Alton fleets
- Review driver schedules for February, the month with the most truck crashes.
- For residential and commercial waste routes, look again at March schedules: garbage-truck crashes peak then.
- With 24.9% of truck crashes on snow, slush or ice (above Maine), plan winter equipment checks early.
- 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 Penobscot 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 (Penobscot County) |
|---|---|
| I-95 | 417 |
| Main Rd | 49 |
| Broadway | 24 |
| Main St | 23 |
| Hammond St | 16 |
| Parking Lot | 14 |
| Western Av | 14 |
| Airline Rd | 13 |
Alton at a glance
| Population | 833 |
| Land area | 42.3 sq mi |
| Density | 20 per sq mi |
| Median household income (ZIP 04468) | $56,358 |
| Median home value (ZIP 04468) | $204,423 |
Waste facilities and haulers nearby
Historical data: truck crashes in Penobscot 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 | 77 | — | 2.4 |
| 2000s | 87 | +13% | 2.3 |
| 2010s | 89 | +2% | 1.3 |
| 2020s | 89 | +1% | 1.0 |
In the 1990s about 77 truck crashes a year were reported; in the 2020s, about 89. Reporting coverage also changed between these periods. NHTSA counts 1.0 fatal large-truck crashes a year in 2016–19 and 1.0 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Alton
How many truck crashes happen in Alton?
Penobscot County has had 1,066 reported truck crashes since 2015, injuring 771 people and killing 15.
When do most truck crashes happen in Alton?
February has the most truck crashes in Penobscot County, 12.9% of the yearly total.
How many garbage truck accidents happen in Alton?
37 crashes involving garbage or refuse trucks have been reported in Penobscot County since 2015, 3.5% of all truck crashes.
How do truck crashes in Alton compare with Maine?
Penobscot County records 59.0 truck crashes per 100,000 residents a year, against 57.4 across Maine.
How do I plan a garbage truck route in Alton?
The free Route Planner takes your stops and returns a route risk score, safer alternatives and low-bridge warnings.
2026 is a partial year. Updated October 2026.