Meridian, MI truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Meridian: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Meridian and Ingham County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Ingham County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
1.8 deaths per 100 garbage-truck crashes vs 1.8 for all trucks.
Deadliest roads
How Ingham County compares with Michigan
Ingham County against Michigan and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Ingham County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Ingham County | Michigan | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 38.4 | 52.4 | 49.7 | 27% below the state |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 1.8 | 2.1 | 3.4 | 14% below the state |
| Injuries per crash | 0.25 | 0.30 | 0.49 | 17% below the state |
| Garbage-truck share | 4.6% | 3.2% | 2.3% | 1.4× the state |
| On snow, slush or ice | 15.5% | 17.7% | 6.2% | 13% below the state |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 29.5% | 25.5% | 23.7% | 1.2× the state |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 23.3% | 21.9% | 13.8% | same |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 40.6% | 44.4% | 41.9% | 8% below the state |
| After dark | 20.2% | 20.7% | 24.8% | same |
Compared with Michigan, Ingham County is lower on crashes per 100k residents / yr, deaths per 100 crashes and injuries per crash. It runs above Michigan on garbage-truck share and morning rush (6–10 am).
The headline for Ingham County: 1 in 22 of truck crashes here involve garbage trucks: 4.6%, vs 3.2% in Michigan.
Overview
Police reported 1,324 crashes involving commercial trucks in Ingham County since 2015: 357 people were injured and 24 were killed.
Across the years with complete reporting, that is roughly one truck crash every 3 days.
Meridian had 67 reported truck crashes since 2015, too few for reliable patterns, so the charts and findings on this page use Ingham County numbers.
When crashes happen
Truck crashes peak in October (10.3% of the year) and are lowest in March (6.1%).
November through March accounts for 40.6% of truck crashes here, compared with 44.4% in Michigan.
More truck crashes happen at 12–1 pm than at any other hour (9.3%).
Snow, slush or ice was on the road in 15.5% of truck crashes, compared with 17.7% in Michigan.
Where crashes happen
Roads with fatal crashes involving a large truck within 10 miles of Meridian since 2015: I-69 (2), I-96 (2), US-127 (2), College Rd (1) and I-496 (1). No single road stands out.
Garbage & waste trucks
Garbage trucks account for 58 of the truck crashes here, or 4.4%, compared with 3.2% in Michigan.
The most garbage-truck crashes happen in August (16%).
Per 100 crashes, garbage trucks recorded 1.8 deaths compared with 1.8 for all trucks.
Route planning tips for Meridian fleets
- Build extra time into October routes: it has the most truck crashes here.
- Waste haulers: August is the peak month for garbage-truck crashes in Ingham County.
- 29.5% of truck crashes happen between 6 and 10 am, above Michigan; consider earlier or later starts where possible.
- 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 Ingham County
By hour of day
Most dangerous roads for trucks
| Road | Fatal truck crashes since 2015 (within 10 miles) |
|---|---|
| I-69 | 2 |
| I-96 | 2 |
| US-127 | 2 |
| College Rd | 1 |
| I-496 | 1 |
| SR-27 | 1 |
| SR-99 | 1 |
| Shaw Ln | 1 |
| Zimmer Rd | 1 |
Roads named most in all truck crash reports
| Road | Truck crashes since 2015 (Ingham County) |
|---|---|
| I-96 | 131 |
| US-127 | 79 |
| S Us 127 | 71 |
| Grand River | 61 |
| Cedar | 60 |
| N Us 127 | 57 |
| Martin Luther King Jr | 39 |
| Saginaw | 34 |
Meridian at a glance
| Population | 45,102 |
| Land area | 30.6 sq mi |
| Density | 1,476 per sq mi |
Waste facilities and haulers nearby
Historical data: truck crashes in Ingham 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 | 65 | — | 1.5 |
| 2000s | 86 | +32% | 1.9 |
| 2010s | 76 | -11% | 1.5 |
| 2020s | 118 | +54% | 1.6 |
From the 1990s to the 2020s, yearly reported truck crashes went from 65 to 118. Some of the change may reflect how crashes were reported. Fatal crashes involving a large truck averaged 1.2 a year in 2016–19 and 1.6 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Meridian
How common are truck crashes in Meridian?
Since 2015, 1,324 crashes involving commercial trucks were reported in Ingham County (357 injured, 24 killed).
Which month has the most truck crashes in Meridian?
The worst month is October: 10.3% of truck crashes in Ingham County happen then.
How many garbage truck crashes are there in Meridian?
58 crashes involving garbage or refuse trucks have been reported in Ingham County since 2015, 4.4% of all truck crashes.
How do truck crashes in Meridian compare with Michigan?
The yearly rate is 38.4 truck crashes per 100,000 residents in Ingham County, vs 52.4 for Michigan.
How can I plan a safer truck route in Meridian?
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.