Sterling, NY truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Sterling: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Sterling and Cayuga County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Cayuga County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
16 of 486 truck crashes since 2015.
Deadliest roads
How Cayuga County compares with New York State
Cayuga County against New York State and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Cayuga County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Cayuga County | New York State | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 67.5 | 28.0 | 49.7 | 2.4× the state |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 0.9 | 2.0 | 3.4 | 55% below the state |
| Injuries per crash | 0.52 | 0.73 | 0.49 | 29% below the state |
| Garbage-truck share | 3.3% | 3.6% | 2.3% | 7% below the state |
| On snow, slush or ice | 34.4% | 9.4% | 6.2% | 3.6× the state |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 28.3% | 25.1% | 23.7% | 1.1× the state |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 37.8% | 17.9% | 13.8% | 2.1× the state |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 54.5% | 41.8% | 41.9% | 1.3× the state |
| After dark | 21.6% | 22.1% | 24.8% | same |
Cayuga County has lower values than New York for deaths per 100 crashes, injuries per crash and garbage-truck share. It stands out for higher crashes per 100k residents / yr, on snow, slush or ice and morning rush (6–10 am).
What stands out in Cayuga County: 34.4% on snowy, slushy or icy roads, against 9.4% across New York.
Overview
Since 2015, 486 crashes involving commercial trucks have been reported in Cayuga County. They injured 248 people and killed 5.
In complete reporting years that works out to about one truck crash every 7 days.
Sterling had 0 reported truck crashes since 2015, too few for reliable patterns, so the charts and findings on this page use Cayuga County numbers.
95% of truck crash reports in Cayuga County since 2015 leave the city field blank; place counts include only reports that name the place.
When crashes happen
February has the most truck crashes, 16.9% of the yearly total, while May has the fewest (4.9%).
The five winter months (November to March) hold 54.5% of truck crashes, against 41.8% across New York.
More truck crashes happen at 9–10 am than at any other hour (10.1%).
34.4% of truck crashes here happened on snow, slush or ice, against 9.4% across New York.
Where crashes happen
Since 2015, fatal crashes with a large truck within 10 miles of Sterling happened on E Port Bay Rd (1), Martville Rd (1), SR-104 (1), SR-3 (1) and SR-38 (1); no road leads clearly.
Garbage & waste trucks
Garbage trucks account for 16 of the truck crashes here, or 3.3%, compared with 3.6% in New York.
Route planning tips for Sterling fleets
- Review driver schedules for February, the month with the most truck crashes.
- The morning rush (6–10 am) holds 28.3% of truck crashes here, more than New York; adjust start times where you can.
- With 34.4% of truck crashes on snow, slush or ice (above New York), plan winter equipment checks early.
- Paste your stops into the free Route Planner to see the risk score, safer alternatives and low bridges.
About the data
This report uses the FMCSA crash file (reported crashes of trucks over 10,000 lb) and NHTSA FARS (fatal crashes). It reports the numbers without guessing at reasons.
Reporting to FMCSA was incomplete in 2023 and 2024; rates and comparisons skip those years.
Truck crashes by year: all trucks vs garbage trucks
Seasonality: when trucks crash in Cayuga County
By hour of day
Most dangerous roads for trucks
| Road | Fatal truck crashes since 2015 (within 10 miles) |
|---|---|
| E Port Bay Rd | 1 |
| Martville Rd | 1 |
| SR-104 | 1 |
| SR-3 | 1 |
| SR-38 | 1 |
Roads named most in all truck crash reports
| Road | Truck crashes since 2015 (Cayuga County) |
|---|---|
| I-90 | 2 |
| Baldwin Road | 1 |
| Creek Rd | 1 |
| Erron Hill Rd. | 1 |
| Ira Station Rd | 1 |
| Skinner Hill Road | 1 |
| State Highway 370 | 1 |
Sterling at a glance
| Population | 3,156 |
| Land area | 45.4 sq mi |
| Density | 69 per sq mi |
| Median household income (ZIP 13156) | $64,063 |
| Median home value (ZIP 13156) | $166,278 |
Waste facilities and haulers nearby
Historical data: truck crashes in Cayuga 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 | 20 | — | 1.0 |
| 2000s | 35 | +76% | 0.8 |
| 2010s | 43 | +20% | 0.7 |
| 2020s | 46 | +9% | 0.6 |
In the 1990s about 20 truck crashes a year were reported; in the 2020s, about 46. Reporting coverage also changed between these periods. NHTSA counts 1.0 fatal large-truck crashes a year in 2016–19 and 0.6 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Sterling
How common are truck crashes in Sterling?
Cayuga County has had 486 reported truck crashes since 2015, injuring 248 people and killing 5.
What is the worst month for truck crashes in Sterling?
Truck crashes in Cayuga County peak in February, with 16.9% of the year's crashes.
Are garbage truck crashes common in Sterling?
16 crashes involving garbage or refuse trucks have been reported in Cayuga County since 2015, 3.3% of all truck crashes.
How do truck crashes in Sterling compare with New York?
The yearly rate is 67.5 truck crashes per 100,000 residents in Cayuga County, vs 28.0 for New York.
How can I plan a safer truck route in Sterling?
The free Route Planner takes your stops and returns a route risk score, safer alternatives and low-bridge warnings.
Crash reporting to FMCSA was incomplete in 2023 and 2024; those years are greyed out and left out of rates. 2026 is a partial year. Updated October 2026.