West Coast Mountains

How can it be deceiving when there are signs that literally tell you what you need to know?

 

Any grade can bite you if you're heavy and you top out like you're driving a Chevy Impala. Even a minor grade. If you don't know the hill, use extra caution, don't take chances. and don't do whatever the faster trucks are doing.

As far as Donner is concerned and assuming dry pavement, the 55 mph speed limit and reduced advisory speeds will keep all but the poorest maintained brakes and weakest engine brake trucks out of trouble.

The ones who screw up are often the idiot lease operators riding trailer brakes (not theirs) all the way down and going for reduced lap speed time.

 

Donner is a great training "hill", it's steep and then flattens out, steep then flat, steep then flat.

The bad part of heading west is close to the bottom and it turns into a snake with tight curves. Everyone thinks they are going down a Luge driving balls out faster than they can see whats ahead of them. Lots of them have a hard time keeping it in their own lane. Be ready for an accident ahead of you.

 

Donner Pass

 

10 most dangerous roads for truckers

10 most dangerous roads for truckers

1. I-10 in Alabama
2. I-95 in Florida
3. HWY-75 in Idaho
4. I-40 in Arkansas
5. US-1 in Florida
6. M-20 in Michigan
7. I-80 Nebraska
8. HWY-5 in Colorado
9. I-70 in Maryland
10. SC-35 South Carolina

25 most deadly highways in the U.S.

25 most deadly highways in the U.S.

1. I-4 (Tampa, FL to Daytona Beach, FL): 1.25 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Orlando

2. I-45 (Dallas, TX to Galveston, TX): 1.02 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Houston

3. US 192 (Four Corners, FL to Indialantic, FL): 0.87 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Melbourne, FL

4. I-17 (Flagstaff, AZ to Phoenix, AZ): 0.84 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Phoenix

5. I-95 (Miami, FL to Weston, MA): 0.73 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Jacksonville, FL

6. I-10 (Santa Monica, CA to Jacksonville, FL): 0.7 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Houston

7. US 175 (Dallas, TX to Jacksonville, TX): 0.69 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Dallas

8. I-37 (San Antonio, TX to Corpus Christi, TX): 0.65 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: San Antonio

9. US 290 (Junction, TX to Houston, TX): 0.63 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Austin, TX

10. I-78 (Union Township, PA to New York City): 0.63 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Jersey City, NJ

11. I-75 (Sault Ste. Marie, MI to Miami Lakes, FL): 0.599 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Atlanta, GA

12. I-26 (Kingsport, TN to Charleston, SC): 0.59 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Charleston

13. US 199 (Grant Pass, OR to Crescent City, CA): 0.58 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Grants Pass

14. I-20 (Scroggins Draw, TX to Florence, SC): 0.57 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Dallas

15. I-85 (Petersburg, VA to Montgomery, AL): 0.57 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Charlotte, NC

16. I-5 (Blaine, WA to San Ysidro, CA): 0.53 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: San Diego

17. I-35 (Duluth, MN to Laredo, TX): 0.48 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Austin, TX

18. I-65 (Gary, IN to Mobile, AL): 0.48 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Louisville, KY

19. I-59 (Wildwood, GA to Slidell, LA): 0.47 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Birmingham, AL

20. US 17 (Winchester, VA to Punta Gorda, FL): 0.43 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Myrtle Beach, SC

21. I-40 (Barstow, CA to Wilmington, NC): 0.43 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Memphis, TN

22. I-84 (Dunmore, PA to Sturbridge, MA): 0.42 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Hartford, CT

23. I-15 (Sweet Grass, MT to San Diego, CA): 0.42 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: San Diego

24. US 1 (Fort Kent, ME to Key West, FL): 0.41 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Philadelphia

25. I-44 (Wichita Falls, TX to St. Louis, MO): 0.41 deaths per mile
Deadliest city: Oklahoma City

While this morbid list and graphic might make it look like the U.S. is a dangerous place to travel, compared to the rest of the world, it is not. According to the World Health Organization, the U.S. is among the 25 safest countries to drive, based on total fatalities per billion kilometers driven, Teletrac Navman, points out.

 

The Rockies are an urban legend deployed to slow down the flood of those from "back East" moving West and bringing their Yankee ways with them.

 

The op is asking about the west coast mountains, not some Nebraska corn field.

 

The drivers that get in trouble on the hills, are the ones that never had any respect for them, or lost their respect for them.
Like so many things in this life, it's about respect.

 

There is no hwy 5 in Colorado

 

I think they meant CO 5 aka Mt. Evans Road. I have no idea why trucks would be on that road other than perhaps logging roads.