Panama, NE truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Panama: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Panama and Lancaster County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Lancaster County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
1.5 deaths per 100 garbage-truck crashes vs 2.4 for all trucks.
Deadliest roads
How Lancaster County compares with Nebraska
Lancaster County against Nebraska and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Lancaster County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Lancaster County | Nebraska | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 35.6 | 60.7 | 49.7 | 41% below the state |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 2.4 | 4.8 | 3.4 | 50% below the state |
| Injuries per crash | 0.59 | 0.57 | 0.49 | same |
| Garbage-truck share | 5.0% | 1.8% | 2.3% | 2.8× the state |
| On snow, slush or ice | 14.0% | 16.7% | 6.2% | 17% below the state |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 25.2% | 22.4% | 23.7% | 1.1× the state |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 18.3% | 20.4% | 13.8% | 10% below the state |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 42.6% | 42.7% | 41.9% | same |
| After dark | 20.9% | 24.5% | 24.8% | 15% below the state |
Compared with Nebraska, Lancaster County is lower on crashes per 100k residents / yr, deaths per 100 crashes and on snow, slush or ice. It stands out for higher garbage-truck share and morning rush (6–10 am).
What stands out in Lancaster County: 1 in 20 of truck crashes here involve garbage trucks: 5.0%, vs 1.8% in Nebraska.
Overview
Police reported 1,360 crashes involving commercial trucks in Lancaster County since 2015: 801 people were injured and 34 were killed.
In complete reporting years that works out to about one truck crash every 3 days.
Only 0 truck crashes were reported in Panama since 2015; patterns below come from Lancaster County as a whole.
30% of truck crash reports in Lancaster County since 2015 leave the city field blank; place counts include only reports that name the place.
When crashes happen
Truck crashes peak in February (10.2% of the year) and are lowest in April (7.0%).
November through March accounts for 42.6% of truck crashes here, compared with 42.7% in Nebraska.
More truck crashes happen at 12–1 pm than at any other hour (8.4%).
Snow, slush or ice was on the road in 14.0% of truck crashes, compared with 16.7% in Nebraska.
Where crashes happen
Since 2015, fatal crashes with a large truck within 10 miles of Panama happened on SR-2 (2) and SR-43 (1); no road leads clearly.
Garbage & waste trucks
67 crashes involved a garbage or refuse truck, a 4.9% share (Nebraska: 1.8%).
Their busiest month is February, with 16% of garbage-truck crashes.
Deaths per 100 garbage-truck crashes: 1.5, vs 2.4 for all truck crashes.
Route planning tips for Panama fleets
- Review driver schedules for February, the month with the most truck crashes.
- Garbage-truck crashes here peak in February; review collection routes for that month.
- Morning starts matter: 25.2% of truck crashes fall between 6 and 10 am, higher than Nebraska.
- Use the free Route Planner to score your route and spot low bridges before drivers head out.
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 Lancaster County
By hour of day
Most dangerous roads for trucks
| Road | Fatal truck crashes since 2015 (within 10 miles) |
|---|---|
| SR-2 | 2 |
| SR-43 | 1 |
Roads named most in all truck crash reports
| Road | Truck crashes since 2015 (Lancaster County) |
|---|---|
| I-80 | 145 |
| US-77 | 28 |
| US-6 | 28 |
| SR-2 | 12 |
| Cornhusker Hwy | 9 |
| US-34 | 9 |
| SR-77 | 6 |
| SR-6 | 6 |
Panama at a glance
| Population | 232 |
| Land area | 0.3 sq mi |
| Density | 817 per sq mi |
| Median household income (ZIP 68419) | $98,750 |
| Median home value (ZIP 68419) | $215,252 |
Waste facilities and haulers nearby
Historical data: truck crashes in Lancaster 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 | 126 | — | 1.9 |
| 2000s | 107 | -15% | 2.7 |
| 2010s | 111 | +4% | 2.2 |
| 2020s | 117 | +6% | 2.0 |
Reported truck crashes averaged 126 a year in the 1990s and 117 a year in the 2020s. Reporting practices changed over time, so part of any change can come from reporting. Fatal crashes involving a large truck averaged 2.5 a year in 2016–19 and 2.0 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Panama
How many truck crashes happen in Panama?
Since 2015, 1,360 crashes involving commercial trucks were reported in Lancaster County (801 injured, 34 killed).
What is the worst month for truck crashes in Panama?
Truck crashes in Lancaster County peak in February, with 10.2% of the year's crashes.
Are garbage truck crashes common in Panama?
67 crashes involving garbage or refuse trucks have been reported in Lancaster County since 2015, 4.9% of all truck crashes.
How does Panama compare with Nebraska for truck crashes?
The yearly rate is 35.6 truck crashes per 100,000 residents in Lancaster County, vs 60.7 for Nebraska.
What is the best way to plan truck routes in Panama?
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.