Cascade, MN truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Cascade: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Cascade and Olmsted County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Olmsted County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
3.8 deaths per 100 garbage-truck crashes vs 3.5 for all trucks.
Deadliest roads
How Olmsted County compares with Minnesota
Olmsted County against Minnesota and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Olmsted County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Olmsted County | Minnesota | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 32.4 | 39.0 | 49.7 | 17% below the state |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 3.5 | 3.0 | 3.4 | 1.2× the state |
| Injuries per crash | 0.37 | 0.37 | 0.49 | same |
| Garbage-truck share | 4.4% | 2.8% | 2.3% | 1.6× the state |
| On snow, slush or ice | 26.6% | 25.6% | 6.2% | same |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 26.4% | 27.0% | 23.7% | same |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 19.7% | 19.1% | 13.8% | same |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 50.8% | 46.2% | 41.9% | 1.1× the state |
| After dark | 20.0% | 20.3% | 24.8% | same |
Olmsted County sits below Minnesota on crashes per 100k residents / yr. It stands out for higher deaths per 100 crashes, garbage-truck share and winter months (nov–mar).
Olmsted County at a glance: 1 in 23 crashes involve a garbage truck (26 since 2015), vs 2.8% across Minnesota.
Overview
Since 2015, 639 crashes involving commercial trucks have been reported in Olmsted County. They injured 245 people and killed 25.
That averages about one truck crash every 7 days in fully reported years.
Cascade had 15 reported truck crashes since 2015, too few for reliable patterns, so the charts and findings on this page use Olmsted County numbers.
When crashes happen
The worst month is January with 11.3% of truck crashes; the quietest is June at 5.2%.
November through March accounts for 50.8% of truck crashes here, compared with 46.2% in Minnesota.
The busiest hour is 7–8 am, with 9.7% of truck crashes.
26.6% of truck crashes here happened on snow, slush or ice, against 25.6% across Minnesota.
Where crashes happen
The deadliest road for trucks within 10 miles of Cascade is US-52, with 2 fatal large-truck crashes since 2015. Next come CR-34 (1), CR-44 60Th Ave Sw (1) and US-14 (1).
Garbage & waste trucks
Garbage trucks account for 26 of the truck crashes here, or 4.1%, compared with 2.8% in Minnesota.
Garbage-truck crashes peak in January (19% of them).
Per 100 crashes, garbage trucks recorded 3.8 deaths compared with 3.5 for all trucks.
Route planning tips for Cascade fleets
- Review driver schedules for January, the month with the most truck crashes.
- Look at alternatives to US-52 at busy times: it leads this area in fatal truck crashes.
- Garbage-truck crashes here peak in January; review collection routes for that month.
- 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 Olmsted County
By hour of day
Most dangerous roads for trucks
| Road | Fatal truck crashes since 2015 (within 10 miles) |
|---|---|
| US-52 | 2 |
| CR-34 | 1 |
| CR-44 60Th Ave Sw | 1 |
| US-14 | 1 |
| US-63 | 1 |
Roads named most in all truck crash reports
| Road | Truck crashes since 2015 (Olmsted County) |
|---|---|
| Usth 52 | 94 |
| Isth 90 | 76 |
| Usth 14 | 33 |
| Usth 63 | 26 |
| West Circle Dr Nw | 13 |
| Mnth 42 | 12 |
| Hwy | 12 |
| Csah 3 | 11 |
Cascade at a glance
| Population | 2,835 |
| Land area | 11.5 sq mi |
| Density | 246 per sq mi |
| Median household income (ZIP 55901) | $94,607 |
| Median home value (ZIP 55901) | $317,311 |
Waste facilities and haulers nearby
Historical data: truck crashes in Olmsted 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 | 27 | — | 2.0 |
| 2000s | 60 | +122% | 1.7 |
| 2010s | 52 | -13% | 1.0 |
| 2020s | 51 | -3% | 1.6 |
From the 1990s to the 2020s, yearly reported truck crashes went from 27 to 51. Some of the change may reflect how crashes were reported. Fatal crashes involving a large truck averaged 0.2 a year in 2016–19 and 1.6 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Cascade
How common are truck crashes in Cascade?
Olmsted County has had 639 reported truck crashes since 2015, injuring 245 people and killing 25.
Which road has the most fatal truck crashes in Cascade?
Since 2015, US-52 has had the most fatal large-truck crashes within 10 miles of Cascade: 2.
Which month has the most truck crashes in Cascade?
Truck crashes in Olmsted County peak in January, with 11.3% of the year's crashes.
How many garbage truck crashes are there in Cascade?
Since 2015, Olmsted County has reported 26 garbage-truck crashes, or 4.1% of its truck crashes.
What is the truck crash rate in Cascade compared with Minnesota?
The yearly rate is 32.4 truck crashes per 100,000 residents in Olmsted County, vs 39.0 for Minnesota.
How can I plan a safer truck route in Cascade?
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.