Willow Lake, SD truck route planning & crash data
Plan safer truck routes in Willow Lake: commercial truck and garbage truck crashes in Willow Lake and Clark County, dangerous roads, seasonality and route safety data for fleets. Patterns use Clark County numbers.
Where fatal truck crashes happened
Risk scorecard
Key findings
Snapshot
Crashes by month
Garbage trucks vs all trucks
0 of 26 truck crashes since 2015.
Deadliest roads
No fatal large-truck crashes with a road name recorded here since 2015.
How Clark County compares with South Dakota
Clark County against South Dakota and the US, 2015–2025 (years with complete crash reporting). Per-resident rates make big and small places comparable.
Where Clark County stands out
Full comparison
| Measure (2015–2025) | Clark County | South Dakota | United States | vs state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crashes per 100k residents / yr | 52.6 | 42.0 | 49.7 | 1.3× the state |
| Deaths per 100 crashes | 26.1 | 5.2 | 3.4 | 5.0× the state |
| Injuries per crash | 0.26 | 0.13 | 0.49 | 2.0× the state |
| Garbage-truck share | 0.0% | 1.6% | 2.3% | 100% below the state |
| On snow, slush or ice | 13.0% | 28.6% | 6.2% | 54% below the state |
| Morning rush (6–10 am) | 21.7% | 22.2% | 23.7% | same |
| In rain, sleet or snow | 8.7% | 17.5% | 13.8% | 50% below the state |
| Winter months (Nov–Mar) | 34.8% | 48.8% | 41.9% | 29% below the state |
| After dark | 17.4% | 22.8% | 24.8% | 24% below the state |
Clark County has lower values than South Dakota for garbage-truck share, on snow, slush or ice and in rain, sleet or snow. It stands out for higher crashes per 100k residents / yr, deaths per 100 crashes and injuries per crash.
The headline for Clark County: 26.1 deaths per 100 truck crashes, vs 5.2 in South Dakota.
Overview
Police reported 26 crashes involving commercial trucks in Clark County since 2015: 6 people were injured and 7 were killed.
That averages about one truck crash every 175 days in fully reported years.
Only 0 truck crashes were reported in Willow Lake since 2015; patterns below come from Clark County as a whole.
When crashes happen
October has the most truck crashes, 26.9% of the yearly total, while June has the fewest (0.0%).
Winter months (Nov–Mar) carry 34.8% of truck crashes, vs 48.8% for South Dakota.
More truck crashes happen at 9–10 am than at any other hour (15.4%).
Road surface: 13.0% of truck crashes were on snow, slush or ice (South Dakota: 28.6%).
Where crashes happen
No fatal crash involving a large truck has a recorded location within 10 miles of Willow Lake since 2015.
Garbage & waste trucks
No crashes involving garbage or refuse trucks have been reported in Clark County since 2015.
Route planning tips for Willow Lake fleets
- Build extra time into October routes: it has the most truck crashes here.
- 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 Clark County
By hour of day
Most dangerous roads for trucks
No fatal crashes involving a large truck with a road name were recorded within 10 miles since 2015.
Roads named most in all truck crash reports
| Road | Truck crashes since 2015 (Clark County) |
|---|---|
| US-212 | 8 |
| Sd Hwy 20 | 4 |
| Sd Hwy 25 | 4 |
| Ave | 3 |
| Sd Hwy 28 | 3 |
| 424Th Ave | 1 |
Willow Lake at a glance
| Population | 268 |
| Land area | 0.4 sq mi |
| Density | 720 per sq mi |
| Median household income (ZIP 57278) | $70,208 |
| Median home value (ZIP 57278) | $220,434 |
Historical data: truck crashes in Clark 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 | 1 | — | 0.3 |
| 2000s | 2 | +57% | 0.2 |
| 2010s | 3 | +23% | 0.1 |
| 2020s | 2 | -14% | 0.4 |
In the 1990s about 1 truck crash a year were reported; in the 2020s, about 2. Reporting coverage also changed between these periods. NHTSA counts 0.2 fatal large-truck crashes a year in 2016–19 and 0.4 a year in 2020–24.
Nearby places
Questions fleets ask about Willow Lake
How many truck accidents are there in Willow Lake?
26 truck crashes have been reported in Clark County since 2015, with 7 deaths and 6 injuries.
Which month has the most truck crashes in Willow Lake?
The worst month is October: 26.9% of truck crashes in Clark County happen then.
Are garbage truck crashes common in Willow Lake?
Since 2015, Clark County has reported 0 garbage-truck crashes, or 0.0% of its truck crashes.
What is the truck crash rate in Willow Lake compared with South Dakota?
Per 100,000 residents, Clark County has 52.6 truck crashes a year; South Dakota has 42.0.
How do I plan a garbage truck route in Willow Lake?
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.