Smithtown, NY — Crash Data, Roads, History & Law
Smithtown is a town in Suffolk County, New York, with 116,296 residents at the 2020 Census. Federal crash records show 116 fatal crashes that killed 118 people within its boundaries from 2010 through 2024 — 24 of them on foot. Jericho Turnpike (NY 25) accounted for more of those deaths (18) than any other road. Residents who commute travel an average of 32.2 minutes each way.
Long Island Town Fact Book · Updated · Sources & method
Smithtown at a glance
- Status
- Town
- County
- Suffolk County
- Population (2020 Census)
- 116,296[C]
- Housing units (2020)
- 41,415
- Land area
- 53.75 sq mi (plus 57.7 sq mi of water)
- Density
- 2,164 people per sq mi
- Average commute
- 32.2 minutes[B]
- Traffic deaths, 2010–2024
- 118[A]
- ZIP Codes
- 11787, 11788, 11780
- Founded / settled
- 1665, per the Town's own website[1]
- Legal status
- Town in Suffolk County, comprising six hamlets (Smithtown, Kings Park, St. James, Nesconset, Commack and Hauppauge, the last shared with the Town of Islip) and three incorporated villages[1]
- Incorporated villages within the Town
- Village of the Branch, Village of Head of the Harbor, Village of Nissequogue[1]
- LIRR service
- Three Long Island Rail Road stations within the Town, per the Town's own description[1]
- Police
- Suffolk County Police Department 4th Precinct, 727 Veterans Mem. Hwy, Smithtown, NY 11787; the Town's own Department of Public Safety (fire prevention, park rangers, investigations, waterways/navigation, emergency management) is not a police agency[3][4]
- Prior written notice law
- Code of the Town of Smithtown, Ch. 245, Art. III "Civil Claims Notice," § 245-13 "Written notice of defects required"[5]
- Town highway department
- 758 Smithtown Bypass (NY 347), Smithtown, NY 11787; (631) 360-7500; maintains more than 470 miles of town roads[6]
- Main roads and owners
- NY 25 (Jericho Turnpike/Main Street, state); NY 25A (state); NY 347/Smithtown Bypass (state); town-owned local roads (470+ miles) maintained by the Town Highway Department[7][6]
- Census geography
- Smithtown town · GEOID 3610368000 · GNIS 979498
- Coordinates
- 40.9184°N, 73.1779°W
Name:The Smithtown Historical Society identifies Richard Smith as "the Patentee" from whom early town landholding families descended; the town's own website states only that the town was founded in 1665.[1][2]
Fatal crashes in Smithtown, 2010–2024
From January 1, 2010 through December 31, 2024, 118 people died in 116 crashes on public roads inside Smithtown, according to the federal Fatality Analysis Reporting System.[A] Pedestrians account for 24 of those deaths (20%). The deadliest year was 2011, with 12 deaths.
- Fatal crashes
- 116
- People killed
- 118
- Pedestrians
- 24
- Bicyclists
- 1
- Motorcyclists
- 16
- Vehicle occupants
- 77
2024 figures come from NHTSA's Annual Report File and may be revised.
View the chart as a table
| Year | Fatal crashes | Deaths |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 10 | 10 |
| 2011 | 12 | 12 |
| 2012 | 9 | 9 |
| 2013 | 6 | 6 |
| 2014 | 5 | 5 |
| 2015 | 8 | 8 |
| 2016 | 5 | 5 |
| 2017 | 3 | 3 |
| 2018 | 11 | 12 |
| 2019 | 3 | 3 |
| 2020 | 10 | 11 |
| 2021 | 8 | 8 |
| 2022 | 11 | 11 |
| 2023 | 10 | 10 |
| 2024 | 5 | 5 |
Roads where people died
| Road | Crashes | Deaths |
|---|---|---|
| Jericho Turnpike (NY 25) | 17 | 18 |
| Northern Boulevard / Route 25A | 15 | 15 |
| Nesconset Highway (NY 347) | 13 | 13 |
| Veterans Memorial Highway (NY 454) | 8 | 8 |
| Middle Country Road (NY 25) | 7 | 7 |
| Sunken Meadow State Parkway | 7 | 7 |
| Indian Head Rd (CR 14) | 4 | 4 |
| Northern State Parkway | 3 | 3 |
Road names as recorded by police and normalised to common Long Island names.
When and where
- Of the 116 crashes with a recorded time, 57 happened between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m., 21 between 4 and 8 p.m., 24 between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., and 14 between 6 and 10 a.m.
- 55% happened in darkness.
- 14 of the 118 deaths were on expressways or parkways; 104 were on arterials and local streets.
- 2 crashes killed more than one person.
- In at least 24 crashes, a driver had a reported blood-alcohol concentration of .08 or higher. This counts known test results only; NHTSA's official alcohol estimates, which impute untested drivers, are higher.
Who owns the roads where they happened (2015–2024)
FARS has recorded the owner of the roadway since 2015. Of the 74 fatal crashes in Smithtown since then:
- State highways 50 (68%)
- County roads 14 (19%)
- Town roads 10 (14%)
Ownership matters in New York because claims against a county, town, city or village generally require a notice of claim within 90 days (General Municipal Law § 50-e), while claims against the State are brought in the Court of Claims under Court of Claims Act § 10. This is general information, not legal advice.
Rate: 6.8 traffic deaths per 100,000 residents per year, against 9.1 for Suffolk County. This is a resident-based rate, not a measure of how risky the roads are to drive: crashes are counted where they happen, not where the people involved live, so a small community crossed by a major highway shows a high rate.
The 15 most recent fatal crashes
| Date | Time | Road | Deaths | Who died | Light |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| * | 11 a.m. | Nesconset Highway (NY 347) at Terry Rd | 1 | Pedestrian | daylight |
| * | 3 a.m. | Middle Country Road (NY 25) | 1 | Motorcyclist | dark |
| * | 5 p.m. | Jericho Turnpike (NY 25) at Cornell Dr | 1 | Vehicle occupant | daylight |
| * | 3 a.m. | Jericho Turnpike (NY 25) | 1 | Vehicle occupant | dark |
| * | 8 a.m. | Middle Country Road (NY 25) | 1 | Vehicle occupant | daylight |
| 8 a.m. | Harned Rd (CR 12) | 1 | Pedestrian | daylight | |
| 4 a.m. | Vanderbilt Motor Pkwy (CR 67) | 1 | Vehicle occupant | dark | |
| 9 p.m. | Alexander Ave | 1 | Vehicle occupant | dark | |
| 9 p.m. | Jericho Turnpike (NY 25) | 1 | Vehicle occupant | dark | |
| 2 a.m. | Northern State Parkway | 1 | Vehicle occupant | dark | |
| 12 a.m. | Long Island Expressway (I-495) | 1 | Vehicle occupant | dark | |
| 9 p.m. | Nesconset Highway (NY 347) at Southern Blvd | 1 | Vehicle occupant | dark | |
| 10 p.m. | Veterans Memorial Highway (NY 454) | 1 | Pedestrian | dark | |
| 6 p.m. | Scholar Ln | 1 | Pedestrian | dusk | |
| 9 p.m. | Nesconset Highway (NY 347) | 1 | Pedestrian | dark |
FARS contains no names or personal identifiers. * 2024 records are preliminary. Download all 116 records (CSV) · How this was compiled
Recent Smithtown Incident Reports
Person, 65, of Amityville Seriously Injured in Smithtown Crash on Veterans Memorial Highway at County Center Road
Person, 65, of Amityville Seriously Injured in Smithtown Crash on Veterans Memorial Highway. Suffolk County. September 17, 2026.
One Extracted, One Critical After Car Crash Outside Smithtown Police Station
One Extracted, One Critical After Car Crash Outside Smithtown Police Station. September 17, 2026.
Jaws of Life Used After 2-Car Crash at Veterans Memorial Highway and County Center Road in Smithtown
Jaws of Life Used After 2-Car Crash at Veterans Memorial Highway and County Cent. September 17, 2026.
Vehicle Engulfs in Flames After Crashing Into Sunken Meadow State Park Toll Booth, One Dead
Vehicle Engulfs in Flames After Crashing Into Sunken Meadow State Park Toll Boot. in smithtown. September 14, 2026.
NYSDOT to Close Up to Two Lanes on Route 25 in Smithtown and Village of the Branch Starting Sept. 14
NYSDOT to Close Up to Two Lanes on Route 25 in Smithtown and Village of the Bran. on route 25 jericho turnpike. Suffolk County. September 10, 2026.
Two Left Lanes Closed on Westbound NY 347 in Suffolk County — September 10
Two Left Lanes Closed on Westbound NY 347 in Suffolk County — September 10. in smithtown. September 10, 2026.
Updated continuously from 511NY, NYSP, NCPD, and SCPD feeds — all Long Island reports.
Dangerous Roads in Smithtown
Roads running through Smithtown where we've tracked three or more incidents. Each link opens a dedicated road × town breakout with a full incident timeline.
All reported crashes, 2021–2024
These are the crashes police coded to the Town of Smithtown. Police reported 9,958 crashes there from 2021 through 2024 — about 6.8 a day. 2,440 (24.5%) injured someone and 32 were fatal. [D]
| 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2,255 | 2,399 | 2,680 | 2,624 | 9,958 |
- Injury crashes
- 2,440
- Fatal crashes
- 32
- Struck a pedestrian
- 63
- Struck a bicyclist
- 61
- Struck a deer
- 180
Counts are crashes, not people. The municipality is entered by the reporting police agency, and coding is less consistent for small villages, so compare places with care.
How Smithtown gets to work
Smithtown commuters travel an average of 32.2 minutes each way, 1.1 minutes longer than the Suffolk County average (the national average is 26.4 minutes). About 73.1% of workers drive alone, and 4.1% ride the railroad. [B]
| Measure | Smithtown | Suffolk County | New York State | United States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average one-way commute | 32.2 min ±1.5 | 31.1 min | 32.6 min | 26.4 min |
| Commute 60 minutes or longer | 15.3% ±1.1 | 14.1% | 16.8% | 8.6% |
| Commute under 15 minutes | 21.4% ±1.7 | 22.8% | 20.5% | 26% |
| Drive alone | 73.1% ±1.4 | 72.1% | 48.8% | 68.8% |
| Carpool | 4.4% ±0.7 | 7.5% | 6.3% | 8.5% |
| Commuter rail (LIRR) | 4.1% ±0.7 | 3.2% | 1.8% | 0.3% |
| Bus | 0.2% ±0.1 † | 0.6% | 5.1% | 1.5% |
| Walk | 0.6% ±0.3 | 1.4% | 5.6% | 2.4% |
| Work from home | 16.5% ±1.3 | 12% | 14.9% | 15.1% |
| Leave home before 6 a.m. | 8.7% ±1 | 12% | 10.6% | 14.4% |
| Households with no vehicle | 3.9% ±0.9 | 5.1% | 29.2% | 8.4% |
| Households with three or more vehicles | 30.4% ±1.9 | 28.8% | 11.8% | 21.9% |
Survey estimates for 58,785 workers aged 16 and over; ± values are 90% margins of error. † Small sample — the margin of error is large relative to the estimate, so treat the figure as indicative only. Travel-time rows exclude people who work from home.
Notable facts about Smithtown
- The Town of Smithtown's Department of Public Safety is organized into five divisions — Fire Prevention, Park Ranger, Investigation, Waterways and Navigation, and Emergency Management — and is not a police department.[4]
- The Town's own Highway Department maintains more than 470 miles of town roads from its headquarters on the Smithtown Bypass (NY 347).[6]
- In Izzo v. Town of Smithtown (2017), the Appellate Division held that leaves and debris the Town buried under a Kings Park property in the 1970s-1980s could support a continuing-trespass claim decades later.[9]
- Kings Park Psychiatric Center, in the Town's Kings Park hamlet, was consolidated onto the Pilgrim State Hospital campus in the fall of 1996 and formally merged into Pilgrim Psychiatric Center the following fall.[8]
- The Town of Smithtown contains three separately incorporated villages — the Village of the Branch, Head of the Harbor, and Nissequogue — inside its borders.[1]
History
The Town of Smithtown states on its own website that it was founded in 1665.[1] The Smithtown Historical Society, in describing one of its historic properties, refers to "the Patentee Richard Smith" as the source of the landholding from which later town families descended.[2]
The Town today comprises six hamlets — Smithtown, Kings Park, St. James, Nesconset, Commack and Hauppauge (the last shared with the Town of Islip) — and three incorporated villages: the Village of the Branch, the Village of Head of the Harbor and the Village of Nissequogue.[1] One of those hamlets, Kings Park, was for more than a century home to a large state psychiatric hospital; the New York State Office of Mental Health's own history states that Kings Park Psychiatric Center was consolidated and relocated to the Pilgrim State Hospital campus in neighboring Brentwood in the fall of 1996 and merged into Pilgrim Psychiatric Center under one name the following fall.[8]
How the roads got here
New York State's official touring-route description for NY 25 (Jericho Turnpike/Main Street) lists Smithtown among the North Shore communities the route passes through on its way across Long Island.[7] NY 25A's official route description likewise runs it through Kings Park and Smithtown before it becomes North Country Road and Main Street toward Port Jefferson.[7] NY 347 — known locally through the Town as the Smithtown Bypass, where the Town's own Highway Department building stands at 758 Smithtown Bypass — is described in the same state document as passing west of and through Hauppauge and Nesconset on its way toward Port Jefferson Station.[7][6]
The Town's Highway Department, headquartered on the Smithtown Bypass, describes its own responsibility as maintaining "more than 470 miles of roads, drainage systems, recharge basins, driveway aprons, and curbs" — the town-owned local street network that is legally distinct from the state-owned NY 25, 25A and 347 corridors that cross the Town.[6]
Law and legal history
Like other New York towns, Smithtown has adopted a prior-written-notice local law: Chapter 245 of the Code of the Town of Smithtown, "Streets and Sidewalks," contains an Article III titled "Civil Claims Notice," whose § 245-13 is captioned "Written notice of defects required."[5] The Appellate Division, Second Department applied that framework in Morreale v. Town of Smithtown, a 2017 decision arising from a woman's fall on ice on a sidewalk or walkway in the Town's Charles Toner Park: the court held that "[w]here, as here, a municipality has enacted a prior written notice law, it may not be subjected to liability for injuries caused by a defect" absent written notice or a recognized exception, and affirmed summary judgment for the Town.[10]
In a separate 2017 decision, Izzo v. Town of Smithtown, the Second Department revived a nuisance and trespass claim by the owners of commercial property in the Town's Kings Park hamlet, who alleged "the Town wrongfully buried leaves and lawn debris under the surface of their property" in the 1970s and 1980s; the court held that the continued presence of the buried material could give rise to successive causes of action under the continuing-wrong doctrine, rejecting the Town's argument that the claim was time-barred.[9]
Cases of record
- Morreale v. Town of Smithtown, 153 A.D.3d 917, 61 N.Y.S.3d 269 (2d Dept 2017)[10]
- New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Second Department, 2017. Personal-injury action over a fall on ice on a Town-owned sidewalk or walkway in Charles Toner Park, testing the Town's prior-written-notice law (Code of the Town of Smithtown § 245-13).Affirmed summary judgment for the Town: where a municipality has enacted a prior written notice law, it may not be held liable for a defect within the law's ambit absent proof of written notice or a recognized exception (affirmative creation of the defect, or special use), and the plaintiff did not raise a triable issue on either exception.
- Izzo v. Town of Smithtown, 151 A.D.3d 1035, 58 N.Y.S.3d 106 (2d Dept 2017)[9]
- New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Second Department, 2017. Nuisance and trespass action by owners of commercial real property in the Town's Kings Park hamlet, arising from the Town's burial of leaves and lawn debris on their land in the 1970s-1980s.Affirmed denial of the Town's motion for summary judgment: the continued presence of the buried debris could constitute a continuing trespass and nuisance giving rise to successive causes of action, so the claim was not necessarily time-barred merely because the original disposal occurred decades earlier.
Each summary describes the cited decision only. Later appellate history is noted where we found it, but it has not been checked systematically — confirm a case's current status with a citator before relying on it. General information, not legal advice.
Government, courts and policing
The Town's own website describes its Department of Public Safety, headquartered at 65 Maple Avenue, Smithtown, NY 11787 ((631) 360-7553), as organized into "five operating divisions: Fire Prevention, Park Ranger, Investigation, Waterways and Navigation, and Emergency Management" — not a police force.[4] Sworn law enforcement for the Town is provided by the Suffolk County Police Department's Fourth Precinct, whose own department lists its address as 727 Veterans Mem. Hwy, Smithtown, NY 11787.[3] This corrects a widely repeated claim (see emergencyVerified.corrections) that a separate "Smithtown Town Police Department" exists at a Main Street address; no such police department appears on either the Town's or SCPD's own sites.[4][3]
Road ownership within the Town is split between the state (NY 25, 25A and 347), Suffolk County, and the Town itself, whose Highway Department maintains the town road network from its Smithtown Bypass headquarters.[7][6] The Suffolk County Police Department's own contact page lists the Fourth Precinct's address as 727 Veterans Mem. Hwy, Smithtown, NY 11787, distinct from the Town's own Public Safety headquarters on Maple Avenue.[3]
Smithtown timeline
- Town founded. The Town of Smithtown dates its founding to 1665, according to its own website.[1]
- Pilgrim State Hospital opens (regional context). Pilgrim State Hospital, the state psychiatric hospital that in 1996-97 absorbed the Town's Kings Park hamlet's own state hospital, opened in neighboring Brentwood.[8]
- Izzo v. Town of Smithtown decided. The Appellate Division, Second Department, decided Izzo v. Town of Smithtown, a nuisance/trespass case over Town-buried leaf debris on private commercial property in the Kings Park hamlet.[9]
- Morreale v. Town of Smithtown decided. The Appellate Division, Second Department, decided Morreale v. Town of Smithtown, applying the Town's prior-written-notice law to a Town park slip-and-fall claim.[10]
Major roads in Smithtown
| Road | Route | Maintained by | In Smithtown |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jericho Turnpike / Main Street [7] | NY 25 | New York State | runs through |
| North Country Road / Main Street [7] | NY 25A | New York State | runs through |
| Smithtown Bypass [7] | NY 347 | New York State | runs through |
Emergency Resources
Hospitals
- St. Catherine of Siena Hospital (Catholic Health) — 50 Route 25A, Smithtown, NY 11787 — (631) 862-3000
- Stony Brook University Hospital — 101 Nicolls Rd, Stony Brook, NY 11794 — (631) 689-8333 (Level I adult and Level I pediatric trauma center per the New York State Department of Health's trauma center list.)
Police
- Suffolk County Police Department, Fourth Precinct — 727 Veterans Mem. Hwy, Smithtown, NY 11787 — (631) 852-6000 (department main line); (631) 854-8478 (Community Liaison Officer) (Provides primary police service. Emergencies: 911. SCPD's own site does not publish a separate front-desk number for the Fourth Precinct; the department main line and the Community Liaison Officer's direct number are both on the record.)
Courts
- Smithtown Town Justice Court
Local Driver Services in Smithtown
Practical resources for Smithtown drivers — tire shops, gas prices, and live traffic conditions.
Safety Resources
Accident & Legal Resources — Smithtown
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the most dangerous intersections in Smithtown?
Route 25 (Jericho Turnpike) through Nesconset and Hauppauge is Smithtown's highest-accident corridor. The intersection of Jericho Turnpike and Brooksite Drive in Hauppauge is one of the most-cited accident locations in the town. Route 25A through Smithtown hamlet creates pedestrian-vehicle conflicts near Smithtown High School West and the town's historic district.
Is the LIE dangerous near Hauppauge in Smithtown?
The LIE through the Hauppauge section of Smithtown carries very high volumes of truck traffic serving the Hauppauge Industrial Park — one of the largest industrial parks in the eastern United States. Heavy trucks create specific accident risks including tire blowout debris, limited sight lines past large vehicles, and extended stopping distances. Exit 56 (Route 111) and Exit 57 (Vets Highway) approaches are congested during the morning and evening rush.
What hospital serves Smithtown accident victims?
St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center on Route 25A in Smithtown is the closest full-service emergency facility for most Smithtown residents. For major trauma, Stony Brook University Hospital — a Level I Trauma Center — is located in neighboring Stony Brook and is the premier trauma facility for central and eastern Suffolk County.
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Data: machine-readable fact sheet (JSON) · fatal-crash records (CSV) · methodology and limits
References
Datasets
- [A] National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), 2010–2024 national files. Retrieved September 17, 2026.Crashes on public trafficways in which a person died within 30 days. No personal identifiers. Placed by reported coordinates into 2020 Census boundaries.
- [B] U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-Year Estimates, tables B08303, B08013, B08301, B08302, B08201, B19013, B01002. Retrieved September 17, 2026.Survey estimates with 90% margins of error. lowReliability = coefficient of variation above 30%.
- [C] U.S. Census Bureau, TIGERweb — 2020 Census tabulation geography (POP100, HU100, AREALAND). Retrieved September 17, 2026.
- [D] New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, Motor Vehicle Crashes — Case Information: Four Year Window. Retrieved September 17, 2026.Police-reported crashes coded to a town, city or village by the reporting agency. Hamlets are not coded; hamlet pages show the parent town.
Sources for history, roads and law
- [1] Town of Smithtown. About Smithtown (2026). Government record.
- [2] Smithtown Historical Society. Historic Buildings (2026). Historical society.
- [3] Suffolk County Police Department. Contact Us (Precinct Commanding Officer addresses) (2026). Government record.
- [4] Town of Smithtown. Public Safety (2026). Government record.
- [5] Town of Smithtown / General Code (eCode360). Chapter 245, Streets and Sidewalks (Table of Contents) (2026). Government record.
- [6] Town of Smithtown. Highway Department (2026). Government record.
- [7] New York State Department of Transportation, Office of Traffic Safety & Mobility. Official Description of Highway Touring Routes, Bicycle Touring Routes, Scenic Byways, & Commemorative/Memorial Designations in New York State (2017). Government record.
- [8] New York State Office of Mental Health. Pilgrim Psychiatric Center: History (2026). Government record.
- [9] Caselaw Access Project (Harvard Law School Library), New York Appellate Division Reports, 3d Series, vol. 151. Izzo v. Town of Smithtown, 151 A.D.3d 1035 (2d Dept 2017) (2017). Court decision.
- [10] Caselaw Access Project (Harvard Law School Library), New York Appellate Division Reports, 3d Series, vol. 153. Morreale v. Town of Smithtown, 153 A.D.3d 917 (2d Dept 2017) (2017). Court decision.
- [11] Catholic Health (Catholic Health Services of Long Island). St. Catherine of Siena Hospital (2026). Institution.
- [12] New York State Department of Health. New York State Trauma Centers (n.d.). Government record.
- [13] Stony Brook Medicine. Contact Numbers (2026). Academic.
Sources opened and checked September 17, 2026.