Monthly Traffic Safety Analysis

11 CRASHES IN
ASHLAND, MA
FEBRUARY 2026

All metrics benchmarked againstFebruary 2025

In February 2026, Ashland experienced 11 total crashes, a decrease of 45% compared to the 20 crashes recorded in February 2025. The most notable year-over-year shift was a 100% reduction in total injuries, falling from 4 in the prior period to 0 in the current period.

11

-45.0%was 20

Total Crash Events

0

Persons Killed

0

-100.0%was 4

Persons Injured

1

Hit-and-Run Crashes

Note: "Persons Killed" (0) counts individual fatalities across all crash events. "Fatal" in the severity table below (0) counts crash events where at least one fatality occurred. A single crash can result in multiple fatalities. 11 crashes with unreported severity are not shown in the severity breakdown.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-02-01 to 2026-02-28 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records

Trend Summary

The overall trend indicates a significant decrease in crash activity, with total crashes falling by 45% from 20 in February 2025 to 11 in February 2026. This reduction is also reflected in the 100% decrease in total injuries, from 4 to 0, suggesting a safer period.

1

Hit-and-Run Crashes — February 2026

0.0% vs prior (1)

The number of hit-and-run crashes remained consistent at 1 incident in both February 2025 and February 2026. However, the hit-and-run crash rate increased from 5% of total crashes in the prior period to 9.1% in the current period.

When Crashes Happen

The temporal distribution of crashes shifted year-over-year. In February 2026, the peak day for crashes was Wednesday with 4 incidents, whereas in February 2025, Monday saw the most crashes with 7. The peak crash hour in February 2026 was 6 PM with 2 crashes, while in February 2025, 10 PM also recorded 2 crashes as a peak.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-02-01 to 2026-02-28 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-02-01 to 2026-02-28 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)

Top Contributing Factors

The number of crashes with 'No improper driving' as a contributing factor decreased from 5 in February 2025 to 3 in February 2026, a 40% reduction. Crashes attributed to 'Failed to yield right of way' also saw a decrease, from 4 incidents in the prior year to 1 in the current year, representing a 75% drop. Factors such as 'Distracted', 'Visibility obstructed', and 'Followed too closely' each remained stable with 1 crash in both periods.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

No improper driving3 (27.3%)-40.0%prior 5
Distracted1 (9.1%)
Failed to yield right of way1 (9.1%)
Fatigued/asleep1 (9.1%)
Followed too closely1 (9.1%)
Made an improper turn1 (9.1%)
Visibility obstructed1 (9.1%)
Disregarded traffic signs, signals, road markings1 (9.1%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-02-01 to 2026-02-28 · Officer-reported primary contributory cause per crash

Road & Environmental Conditions

Regarding weather conditions, crashes occurring in 'Clear' weather decreased from 11 in February 2025 to 7 in February 2026, while 'Snow' related crashes decreased from 3 to 2. For road surface conditions, 'Dry' surface crashes decreased from 10 to 6, and 'Wet' surface crashes decreased from 3 to 1. In terms of lighting, 'Daylight' crashes decreased from 13 in February 2025 to 9 in February 2026.

Weather

Clear7 (63.6%)
-36.4%prior 11
Snow2 (18.2%)
Cloudy1 (9.1%)
Snow/Sleet, hail (freezing rain or drizzle)1 (9.1%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-02-01 to 2026-02-28 · Weather condition at time of crash

Lighting

Daylight9 (81.8%)
-30.8%prior 13
Dark - roadway not lighted2 (18.2%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-02-01 to 2026-02-28 · Lighting condition field

Road Surface

Dry6 (54.5%)
-40.0%prior 10
Snow3 (27.3%)
Slush1 (9.1%)
Wet1 (9.1%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-02-01 to 2026-02-28 · Road surface condition field

Vehicles & Demographics

Top Vehicle Makes (22 vehicles)

1
HONDA4 (18.2%)
2
CHEVROLET3 (13.6%)
3
TOYOTA3 (13.6%)
-50.0%prior 6
4
NISSAN2 (9.1%)
5
TESL2 (9.1%)
6
INFI1 (4.5%)
7
JEEP1 (4.5%)
8
SUBARU1 (4.5%)
9
HYUNDAI1 (4.5%)
10
CHRYSLER1 (4.5%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-02-01 to 2026-02-28 · Vehicle unit records

2 persons with unknown or unrecorded age excluded from age chart.

Sex Distribution (19 persons with recorded sex)

Female10 (52.6%)
-33.3%prior 15
Male9 (47.4%)
-47.1%prior 17

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-02-01 to 2026-02-28 · Person-level records linked to crash events

Speed Limit Zones

Crashes in 25 mph zones decreased from 7 in February 2025 to 3 in February 2026, a reduction of 4 crashes. Similarly, crashes in 35 mph zones decreased from 9 to 4, a drop of 5 crashes. Crashes in 30 mph zones decreased by 1, from 4 to 3. No fatal crashes were recorded in any speed zone during either period.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-02-01 to 2026-02-28 · Posted speed limit at crash location

Data Sources & Methodology

Primary Data Source

All crash data in this report is sourced from Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV), accessed programmatically via the Arcgis_yearly Open Data API (SODA). This dataset contains official police-reported motor vehicle traffic crash records maintained by the reporting jurisdiction's law enforcement agency. Records are published to the open data portal by the municipality and are subject to the portal's terms of use.

Data Retrieval

  • Access method: Arcgis_yearly Open Data API (SoQL queries)
  • Data format: Structured JSON via REST API
  • Record types queried: Crash events, person records, and vehicle unit records
  • Date filter applied: 2026-02-01 through 2026-02-28
  • Report generated: June 21, 2026

Data Coverage

  • Reporting period: 2026-02-01 through 2026-02-28 (28 days)
  • Geographic scope: ASHLAND, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 11
  • Total persons involved: 23
  • Total vehicles involved: 22

Analytical Methodology

  • Severity classification: Uses the KABCO injury scale (K=Fatal, A=Incapacitating injury, B=Non-incapacitating injury, C=Possible injury, O=No injury/property damage only), the standard classification in U.S. Model Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria (MMUCC). Severity is assigned per crash event based on the most severe injury in that crash. A single fatal crash (K) may involve multiple fatalities; therefore the "Persons Killed" count in the headline KPIs may differ from the "Fatal" crash count in the severity breakdown.
  • Contributing factors: Reflect the officer-determined primary contributory cause recorded at the time of the crash report. These are preliminary determinations and may not reflect final investigation findings.
  • Hit-and-run classification: Based on the hit-and-run indicator field in the official crash report, as determined by the responding officer at the scene.
  • Temporal analysis: Day-of-week and hour-of-day distributions are computed from the crash date/time timestamp in each record.
  • Demographics: Age and sex distributions are drawn from person-level records linked to each crash event. A single crash may involve multiple persons.
  • Vehicle data: Make information is drawn from vehicle unit records linked to each crash event.
  • AI commentary: Narrative sections are generated by Google Gemini (large language model) based on the structured data. Commentary is descriptive, not predictive, and should not be interpreted as expert opinion.

Limitations & Disclaimers

  • Only crashes reported to and documented by law enforcement are included. Minor incidents, unreported crashes, and near-misses are not captured in this dataset.
  • Data reflects conditions at the time of the initial police report and may be subject to subsequent corrections, reclassifications, or supplements by the reporting agency.
  • Open data portal records may experience a publication lag - recently occurring crashes may not yet appear in the dataset at the time of report generation.
  • AI-generated commentary is produced by a large language model and is intended to highlight patterns in the data. It does not constitute legal, medical, or professional analysis.
  • Percentages are calculated from reported data and are subject to rounding.

Non-Affiliation Disclosure

This report is produced independently by ThatCarHitMe.com (Injuria.ai). It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or produced in partnership with any law enforcement agency, municipal government, state department of transportation, or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Data is sourced from publicly available government open data portals.

Data License

The underlying crash data is provided under the municipality's Open Data Terms of Use and is made available to the public for unrestricted use. This analysis and report is © 2026 Injuria.ai and may be cited with attribution using the suggested citation below.

Corrections & Feedback

If you believe any data in this report is inaccurate or have questions about our methodology, please contact: data@injuria.ai. We are committed to accuracy and will issue corrections promptly.

Suggested Citation

ThatCarHitMe.com (Injuria.ai). "ASHLAND, MA Crash Intelligence Report: February 2026." Published June 21, 2026. Reporting period: 2026-02-01 to 2026-02-28. Data source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV), Arcgis_yearly Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/massachusetts/ashland/february-2026-report

About the Publisher

ThatCarHitMe.com is a crash data intelligence platform developed by Injuria.ai, a legal technology company specializing in traffic safety analytics. We aggregate and analyze publicly available government crash data to produce structured intelligence reports for communities, researchers, journalists, and legal professionals. Our reports combine programmatic data retrieval from official open data portals with AI-assisted narrative analysis.

Questions about this report's data or methodology: data@injuria.ai

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Ashland, MA Crash Report — February 2026 | ThatCarHitMe.com