Forest Hills, MI truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Forest Hills: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Forest Hills and Kent County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Kent County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
1.0 deaths per 100 garbage-truck crashes vs 1.5 for all trucks.
Deadliest roads
How Kent County compares with Michigan
Kent County against Michigan and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Kent County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Kent County | Michigan | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 58.4 | 52.4 | 49.7 | 1.1× the state |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 1.5 | 2.1 | 3.4 | 29% below the state |
| Injuries per crash | 0.22 | 0.30 | 0.49 | 27% below the state |
| Garbage-truck share | 2.3% | 3.2% | 2.3% | 28% below the state |
| On snow, slush or ice | 15.9% | 17.7% | 6.2% | 10% below the state |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 28.1% | 25.5% | 23.7% | 1.1× the state |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 22.8% | 21.9% | 13.8% | same |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 42.2% | 44.4% | 41.9% | same |
| After dark | 18.4% | 20.7% | 24.8% | 11% below the state |
Kent County sits below Michigan on deaths per 100 crashes, injuries per crash and garbage-truck share. Where it is higher: crashes per 100k residents / yr and morning rush (6–10 am).
What stands out in Kent County: January more garbage-truck crashes happen in January than in any other month (14%).
Overview
Since 2015, 4,686 crashes involving commercial trucks have been reported in Kent County. They injured 1,048 people and killed 69.
Across the years with complete reporting, that is roughly 1 truck crash every day.
Forest Hills had 0 reported truck crashes since 2015, too few for reliable patterns, so the charts and findings on this page use Kent County numbers.
When crashes happen
Truck crashes peak in January (12.6% of the year) and are lowest in April (6.3%).
Winter months (Nov–Mar) carry 42.2% of truck crashes, vs 44.4% for Michigan.
More truck crashes happen at 8–9 am than at any other hour (8.5%).
15.9% of truck crashes here happened on snow, slush or ice, against 17.7% across Michigan.
Where crashes happen
Fatal large-truck crashes within 10 miles of Forest Hills since 2015 were spread across roads: I-96 (3), SR-44 (3), CR-ALDEN Nash Ave (2), US-131 (2) and Barden Dr Se (1).
Garbage & waste trucks
Garbage and refuse trucks were involved in 116 crashes, 2.5% of the total, against 3.2% across Michigan.
Garbage-truck crashes peak in January (14% of them).
Deaths per 100 garbage-truck crashes: 1.0, vs 1.5 for all truck crashes.
Route planning tips for Forest Hills fleets
- Build extra time into January routes: it has the most truck crashes here.
- For residential and commercial waste routes, look again at January schedules: garbage-truck crashes peak then.
- The morning rush (6–10 am) holds 28.1% of truck crashes here, more than Michigan; adjust start times where you can.
- 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 Kent County
By hour of day
Most dangerous roads for trucks
| Road | Fatal truck crashes since 2015 (within 10 miles) |
|---|---|
| I-96 | 3 |
| SR-44 | 3 |
| CR-ALDEN Nash Ave | 2 |
| US-131 | 2 |
| Barden Dr Se | 1 |
| CR-36TH St | 1 |
| CR-68TH St | 1 |
| CR-CASCADE Rd | 1 |
| CR-CIRCLE Dr | 1 |
| CR-WHITNEYVILLE Ave Se | 1 |
Roads named most in all truck crash reports
| Road | Truck crashes since 2015 (Kent County) |
|---|---|
| US-131 | 414 |
| I-96 | 221 |
| N Us 131 | 205 |
| 28Th | 201 |
| S Us 131 | 200 |
| Mile | 163 |
| 44Th | 113 |
| I-196 | 110 |
Forest Hills at a glance
| Land area | 49.3 sq mi |
Waste facilities and haulers nearby
Historical data: truck crashes in Kent 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 | 230 | — | 6.9 |
| 2000s | 253 | +10% | 5.5 |
| 2010s | 259 | +2% | 4.9 |
| 2020s | 428 | +65% | 5.0 |
From the 1990s to the 2020s, yearly reported truck crashes went from 230 to 428. Some of the change may reflect how crashes were reported. Fatal crashes involving a large truck averaged 6.2 a year in 2016–19 and 5.0 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Forest Hills
How many truck accidents are there in Forest Hills?
4,686 truck crashes have been reported in Kent County since 2015, with 69 deaths and 1,048 injuries.
When do most truck crashes happen in Forest Hills?
January has the most truck crashes in Kent County, 12.6% of the yearly total.
How many garbage truck crashes are there in Forest Hills?
Since 2015, Kent County has reported 116 garbage-truck crashes, or 2.5% of its truck crashes.
What is the truck crash rate in Forest Hills compared with Michigan?
The yearly rate is 58.4 truck crashes per 100,000 residents in Kent County, vs 52.4 for Michigan.
How do I plan a garbage truck route in Forest Hills?
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.