Atwater, MN truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Atwater: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Atwater and Kandiyohi County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Kandiyohi County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
7 of 292 truck crashes since 2015.
Deadliest roads
How Kandiyohi County compares with Minnesota
Kandiyohi County against Minnesota and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Kandiyohi County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Kandiyohi County | Minnesota | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 56.8 | 39.0 | 49.7 | 1.5× the state |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 6.5 | 3.0 | 3.4 | 2.2× the state |
| Injuries per crash | 0.54 | 0.37 | 0.49 | 1.5× the state |
| Garbage-truck share | 2.5% | 2.8% | 2.3% | 11% below the state |
| On snow, slush or ice | 20.1% | 25.6% | 6.2% | 21% below the state |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 22.9% | 27.0% | 23.7% | 15% below the state |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 10.4% | 19.1% | 13.8% | 46% below the state |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 43.0% | 46.2% | 41.9% | same |
| After dark | 20.4% | 20.3% | 24.8% | same |
Kandiyohi County sits below Minnesota on garbage-truck share, on snow, slush or ice and morning rush (6–10 am). Where it is higher: crashes per 100k residents / yr, deaths per 100 crashes and injuries per crash.
The headline for Kandiyohi County: 6.5 deaths for every 100 truck crashes, against 3.0 across Minnesota.
Overview
Police reported 292 crashes involving commercial trucks in Kandiyohi County since 2015: 155 people were injured and 21 were killed.
In complete reporting years that works out to about one truck crash every 14 days.
Atwater had 0 reported truck crashes since 2015, too few for reliable patterns, so the charts and findings on this page use Kandiyohi County numbers.
When crashes happen
October has the most truck crashes, 12.7% of the yearly total, while April has the fewest (4.8%).
The five winter months (November to March) hold 43.0% of truck crashes, against 46.2% across Minnesota.
The busiest hour is 10–11 am, with 9.6% of truck crashes.
20.1% of truck crashes here happened on snow, slush or ice, against 25.6% across Minnesota.
Where crashes happen
Fatal large-truck crashes within 10 miles of Atwater since 2015 were spread across roads: US-12 (2) and SR-4 (1).
Garbage & waste trucks
Garbage trucks account for 7 of the truck crashes here, or 2.4%, compared with 2.8% in Minnesota.
Route planning tips for Atwater fleets
- Review driver schedules for October, the month with the most truck crashes.
- Paste your stops into the free Route Planner to see the risk score, safer alternatives and low bridges.
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 Kandiyohi County
By hour of day
Most dangerous roads for trucks
| Road | Fatal truck crashes since 2015 (within 10 miles) |
|---|---|
| US-12 | 2 |
| SR-4 | 1 |
Roads named most in all truck crash reports
| Road | Truck crashes since 2015 (Kandiyohi County) |
|---|---|
| Mnth 23 | 38 |
| Usth 71 | 15 |
| Usth 12 | 13 |
| 195Th Ave Se | 8 |
| 195Th St Se | 8 |
| 30Th St Sw | 8 |
| Hwy | 7 |
| 1St St | 6 |
Atwater at a glance
| Population | 1,098 |
| Land area | 1.0 sq mi |
| Density | 1,066 per sq mi |
| Median household income (ZIP 56209) | $86,118 |
| Median home value (ZIP 56209) | $233,756 |
Waste facilities and haulers nearby
Historical data: truck crashes in Kandiyohi 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 | 4 | — | 1.1 |
| 2000s | 22 | +458% | 1.5 |
| 2010s | 25 | +13% | 0.9 |
| 2020s | 25 | +2% | 2.2 |
In the 1990s about 4 truck crashes a year were reported; in the 2020s, about 25. Reporting coverage also changed between these periods. NHTSA counts 0.2 fatal large-truck crashes a year in 2016–19 and 2.2 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Atwater
How common are truck crashes in Atwater?
Since 2015, 292 crashes involving commercial trucks were reported in Kandiyohi County (155 injured, 21 killed).
What is the worst month for truck crashes in Atwater?
The worst month is October: 12.7% of truck crashes in Kandiyohi County happen then.
How many garbage truck accidents happen in Atwater?
Garbage trucks were involved in 7 reported crashes in Kandiyohi County since 2015 (2.4% of truck crashes).
How do truck crashes in Atwater compare with Minnesota?
Kandiyohi County records 56.8 truck crashes per 100,000 residents a year, against 39.0 across Minnesota.
How do I plan a garbage truck route in Atwater?
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.