Mertztown, PA truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Mertztown: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Mertztown and Berks County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Berks County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
2.5 deaths per 100 garbage-truck crashes vs 2.6 for all trucks.
Deadliest roads
How Berks County compares with Pennsylvania
Berks County against Pennsylvania and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Berks County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Berks County | Pennsylvania | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 81.3 | 57.2 | 49.7 | 1.4× the state |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 2.6 | 2.6 | 3.4 | same |
| Injuries per crash | 0.47 | 0.47 | 0.49 | same |
| Garbage-truck share | 4.1% | 3.6% | 2.3% | 1.1× the state |
| On snow, slush or ice | 8.5% | 9.1% | 6.2% | same |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 25.5% | 24.5% | 23.7% | same |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 18.1% | 19.0% | 13.8% | same |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 43.5% | 42.7% | 41.9% | same |
| After dark | 23.4% | 24.2% | 24.8% | same |
It runs above Pennsylvania on crashes per 100k residents / yr and garbage-truck share.
The headline for Mertztown: US-222 most fatal truck crashes within 10 miles of Mertztown: 12 since 2015.
Overview
Berks County has recorded 4,182 truck crashes since 2015, with 1,968 people injured and 108 killed.
In complete reporting years that works out to about 1 truck crash a day.
Mertztown had 0 reported truck crashes since 2015, too few for reliable patterns, so the charts and findings on this page use Berks County numbers.
When crashes happen
The worst month is January with 9.5% of truck crashes; the quietest is April at 7.3%.
November through March accounts for 43.5% of truck crashes here, compared with 42.7% in Pennsylvania.
The busiest hour is 8–9 am, with 7.1% of truck crashes.
8.5% of truck crashes here happened on snow, slush or ice, against 9.1% across Pennsylvania.
Where crashes happen
US-222 leads within 10 miles of Mertztown with 12 fatal crashes involving a large truck since 2015. After it: I-78 (10), Schantz Rd (2) and US-22 (2).
Garbage & waste trucks
Garbage trucks account for 168 of the truck crashes here, or 4.0%, compared with 3.6% in Pennsylvania.
Garbage-truck crashes peak in March (13% of them).
Per 100 crashes, garbage trucks recorded 2.5 deaths compared with 2.6 for all trucks.
Route planning tips for Mertztown fleets
- Plan January schedules with more margin; it is the worst month for truck crashes in Berks County.
- Check whether your routes use US-222, the road with the most fatal truck crashes in this area.
- For residential and commercial waste routes, look again at March schedules: garbage-truck crashes peak then.
- Check your own stops for crash hotspots and low bridges with the free Route Planner.
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 Berks County
By hour of day
Most dangerous roads for trucks
| Road | Fatal truck crashes since 2015 (within 10 miles) |
|---|---|
| US-222 | 12 |
| I-78 | 10 |
| Schantz Rd | 2 |
| US-22 | 2 |
| I-476 | 1 |
| SR-1022 | 1 |
| SR-1024 | 1 |
| SR-2017 | 1 |
| SR-29 | 1 |
| SR-3012 | 1 |
Roads named most in all truck crash reports
| Road | Truck crashes since 2015 (Berks County) |
|---|---|
| I-0078 | 1,095 |
| SR-0222 | 639 |
| SR-0422 | 349 |
| SR-0061 | 231 |
| SR-0183 | 147 |
| SR-0073 | 92 |
| SR-0012 | 70 |
| SR-0724 | 56 |
Mertztown at a glance
| Land area | 1.1 sq mi |
| Median household income (ZIP 19539) | $107,656 |
| Median home value (ZIP 19539) | $264,192 |
Waste facilities and haulers nearby
Historical data: truck crashes in Berks 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 | 256 | — | 7.2 |
| 2000s | 283 | +11% | 7.7 |
| 2010s | 278 | -2% | 5.7 |
| 2020s | 374 | +34% | 5.4 |
In the 1990s about 256 truck crashes a year were reported; in the 2020s, about 374. Reporting coverage also changed between these periods. Fatal crashes involving a large truck averaged 7.0 a year in 2016–19 and 5.4 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Mertztown
How common are truck crashes in Mertztown?
Berks County has had 4,182 reported truck crashes since 2015, injuring 1,968 people and killing 108.
Which road has the most fatal truck crashes in Mertztown?
NHTSA data shows US-222 with 12 fatal large-truck crashes within 10 miles of Mertztown since 2015, the highest of any road.
Which month has the most truck crashes in Mertztown?
Truck crashes in Berks County peak in January, with 9.5% of the year's crashes.
How many garbage truck crashes are there in Mertztown?
168 crashes involving garbage or refuse trucks have been reported in Berks County since 2015, 4.0% of all truck crashes.
How do truck crashes in Mertztown compare with Pennsylvania?
Berks County records 81.3 truck crashes per 100,000 residents a year, against 57.2 across Pennsylvania.
How do I plan a garbage truck route in Mertztown?
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.