Sandy Lake, PA truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Sandy Lake: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Sandy Lake and Mercer County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Mercer County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
0.0 deaths per 100 garbage-truck crashes vs 2.4 for all trucks.
Deadliest roads
How Mercer County compares with Pennsylvania
Mercer County against Pennsylvania and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Mercer County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Mercer County | Pennsylvania | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 88.3 | 57.2 | 49.7 | 1.5× the state |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 2.4 | 2.6 | 3.4 | 8% below the state |
| Injuries per crash | 0.48 | 0.47 | 0.49 | same |
| Garbage-truck share | 3.7% | 3.6% | 2.3% | same |
| On snow, slush or ice | 26.5% | 9.1% | 6.2% | 2.9× the state |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 22.2% | 24.5% | 23.7% | 10% below the state |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 32.9% | 19.0% | 13.8% | 1.7× the state |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 49.0% | 42.7% | 41.9% | 1.1× the state |
| After dark | 28.4% | 24.2% | 24.8% | 1.2× the state |
Compared with Pennsylvania, Mercer County is lower on deaths per 100 crashes and morning rush (6–10 am). Where it is higher: crashes per 100k residents / yr, on snow, slush or ice and in rain, sleet or snow.
The headline for Mercer County: 26.5% share of truck crashes on snow, slush or ice (Pennsylvania: 9.1%).
Overview
Police reported 1,176 crashes involving commercial trucks in Mercer County since 2015: 547 people were injured and 29 were killed.
That averages about one truck crash every 4 days in fully reported years.
Sandy Lake had 6 reported truck crashes since 2015, too few for reliable patterns, so the charts and findings on this page use Mercer County numbers.
When crashes happen
January has the most truck crashes, 15.1% of the yearly total, while March has the fewest (5.9%).
Winter months (Nov–Mar) carry 49.0% of truck crashes, vs 42.7% for Pennsylvania.
The busiest hour is 12–1 pm, with 6.6% of truck crashes.
Road surface: 26.5% of truck crashes were on snow, slush or ice (Pennsylvania: 9.1%).
Where crashes happen
Roads with fatal crashes involving a large truck within 10 miles of Sandy Lake since 2015: US-19 (2), I-79 (1) and SR-0173 (1). No single road stands out.
Garbage & waste trucks
41 crashes involved a garbage or refuse truck, a 3.5% share (Pennsylvania: 3.6%).
Garbage-truck crashes peak in May (20% of them).
They recorded 0.0 deaths per 100 crashes, against 2.4 for all trucks.
Route planning tips for Sandy Lake fleets
- Build extra time into January routes: it has the most truck crashes here.
- Garbage-truck crashes here peak in May; review collection routes for that month.
- Icy and snowy roads show up in 26.5% of truck crashes here, more than Pennsylvania; schedule winter checks early.
- Paste your stops into the free Route Planner to see the risk score, safer alternatives and low bridges.
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 Mercer County
By hour of day
Most dangerous roads for trucks
| Road | Fatal truck crashes since 2015 (within 10 miles) |
|---|---|
| US-19 | 2 |
| I-79 | 1 |
| SR-0173 | 1 |
Roads named most in all truck crash reports
| Road | Truck crashes since 2015 (Mercer County) |
|---|---|
| I-0080 | 581 |
| I-0079 | 90 |
| SR-0018 | 52 |
| Z H Confair Hw | 50 |
| SR-0019 | 36 |
| SR-0058 | 33 |
| SR-0062 | 31 |
| SR-0173 | 23 |
Sandy Lake at a glance
| Population | 630 |
| Land area | 0.8 sq mi |
| Density | 757 per sq mi |
| Median household income (ZIP 16153) | $63,750 |
| Median home value (ZIP 16153) | $141,304 |
Waste facilities and haulers nearby
Historical data: truck crashes in Mercer 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 | 87 | — | 2.2 |
| 2000s | 88 | +1% | 3.1 |
| 2010s | 80 | -9% | 2.3 |
| 2020s | 93 | +16% | 1.6 |
From the 1990s to the 2020s, yearly reported truck crashes went from 87 to 93. Some of the change may reflect how crashes were reported. Fatal large-truck crashes: 1.8 a year in 2016–19, 1.6 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Sandy Lake
How common are truck crashes in Sandy Lake?
Mercer County has had 1,176 reported truck crashes since 2015, injuring 547 people and killing 29.
When do most truck crashes happen in Sandy Lake?
Truck crashes in Mercer County peak in January, with 15.1% of the year's crashes.
Are garbage truck crashes common in Sandy Lake?
41 crashes involving garbage or refuse trucks have been reported in Mercer County since 2015, 3.5% of all truck crashes.
How do truck crashes in Sandy Lake compare with Pennsylvania?
The yearly rate is 88.3 truck crashes per 100,000 residents in Mercer County, vs 57.2 for Pennsylvania.
What is the best way to plan truck routes in Sandy Lake?
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.