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State Route 20
Fatal crashes 2015–2024 172Deaths 193Counties 8Latest data year 2024
FARS data are based on police crash reports and other sources; the drunk-driving measure is based on the highest BAC of any driver in the crash. Latest data year: 2024. The route is the trafficway recorded for each crash (FARS TWAY_ID); the same route number in another state has its own page.
State Route 20 in California was the trafficway in 172 fatal crashes between 2015 and 2024, in which 193 people died.
That is 0.5% of the 36,640 fatal crashes in California over the same years. The ten-year crash count rose 34% from 128 in 2005–2014 to 172 in 2015–2024.
The crashes were concentrated in Lake County (55), Nevada County (32) and Colusa County (26) and 5 other counties.
27.9% of the crashes had a driver reported as drinking (California: 27.9%) and 23.3% had a speeding-related driver (30.2%); pedestrians were 8.8% and motorcyclists 12.4% of those killed.
Fatal crashes per year
Route identification in FARS is consistent from 2000; earlier years are not shown. Shaded band: the ten-year window used for the shares below.
Compared with all fatal crashes in California
| Measure | State Route 20 | California |
|---|---|---|
| Fatal crashes, 2015–2024 | 172 | 36,640 |
| Deaths, 2015–2024 | 193 | 39,702 |
| Deaths per fatal crash | 1.1 | 1.1 |
| Share of state fatal crashes | 0.5% | 100% |
| Change vs previous ten years | +34% | +19% |
Factor shares
Counties along the route
| # | County | Fatal crashes on SR-20 | Share of route | County total, all roads |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lake County | 55 | 32% | 163 |
| 2 | Nevada County | 32 | 19% | 137 |
| 3 | Colusa County | 26 | 15% | 69 |
| 4 | Mendocino County | 23 | 13% | 207 |
| 5 | Sutter County | 18 | 10% | 161 |
| 6 | Yuba County | 15 | 9% | 148 |
| 7 | Placer County | 2 | 1% | 313 |
| 8 | San Joaquin County | 1 | 1% | 1,128 |
Hour of day
Share of fatal crashes on State Route 20 beginning in each hour, 2015–2024; tick marks the California share for all roads.
Where along the route
| Mile marker range | Fatal crashes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Mile 10–15 | 34 | 20% |
| Mile 0–5 | 26 | 15% |
| Mile 5–10 | 24 | 14% |
| Mile 20–25 | 18 | 10% |
| Mile 35–40 | 14 | 8% |
| Mile 15–20 | 13 | 8% |
Five-mile bins by FARS milepoint, the six with the most fatal crashes; 97.7% of crashes on the route have a milepoint. Milepoints are as recorded by the state and can restart at county or district lines.
Other routes in California
- Interstate 5 1,337
- US Route 101 1,024
- State Route 99 754
- Interstate 15 620
- Interstate 10 605
- State Route 1 502
- Interstate 80 445
- Interstate 405 256
- State Route 91 252
- State Route 60 245
- State Route 4 226
- Interstate 8 211
All routes and counties in California
Questions and answers
How many fatal crashes have there been on State Route 20 in California?
172 fatal crashes with 193 deaths over 2015–2024, per NHTSA's FARS. The route is the trafficway recorded for the crash; the same numbered route in another state has its own page.
Which counties along State Route 20 had the most fatal crashes?
Lake County (55), Nevada County (32), Colusa County (26), Mendocino County (23) and Sutter County (18).
What share of crashes on State Route 20 involved alcohol or speeding?
27.9% had a driver reported as drinking and 23.3% a speeding-related driver, against 27.9% and 30.2% for all fatal crashes in California.
When do fatal crashes happen on State Route 20?
43.9% of the crashes were between 6pm and 6am. The hour chart on this page shows the full distribution.
Provenance
Source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System, annual national CSV files 2000–2024 (accident, vehicle and person tables), public domain. Route pages are built for signed Interstate, US and state routes with at least 20 fatal crashes in 2015–2024. Data through 31 Dec 2024; generated 30 Sep 2026. See methodology and corrections.