Yearly Traffic Safety Analysis

1,240 CRASHES IN
BARNSTABLE, MA
2024

All metrics benchmarked against2023

In 2024, Barnstable recorded 1,240 traffic crashes, a 1.0% decrease from the 1,253 crashes reported in 2023. While overall crashes and injuries declined, the number of pedestrians injured increased by 62.5%, rising from 8 in the prior period to 13 in the current period.

1,240

-1.0%was 1,253

Total Crash Events

4

Persons Killed

418

-8.7%was 458

Persons Injured

58

-13.4%was 67

Hit-and-Run Crashes

Note: "Persons Killed" (4) counts individual fatalities across all crash events. "Fatal" in the severity table below (4) counts crash events where at least one fatality occurred. A single crash can result in multiple fatalities. 29 crashes with unreported severity are not shown in the severity breakdown.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records

Trend Summary

Overall traffic crashes in Barnstable showed a slight decline, decreasing by 1.0% from 1,253 in 2023 to 1,240 in 2024. This downward trend was also reflected in total injuries, which fell by 8.7% from 458 to 418. The number of fatalities remained unchanged at 4 for both periods.

58

Hit-and-Run Crashes — 2024

-13.4% vs prior (67)

Hit-and-run incidents decreased in both absolute numbers and as a percentage of total crashes. The count of hit-and-run crashes fell by 13.4%, from 67 in 2023 to 58 in 2024. Consequently, the hit-and-run rate dropped from 5.3% of all crashes in the prior period to 4.7% in the current period.

Vulnerable Road User Casualties

0

Pedestrians Killed

Prior: 1-100.0%

0

Cyclists Killed

Prior: 00.0%

4

Motorists Killed

Prior: 333.3%

0

Other Killed

Prior: 00.0%

13

Pedestrians Injured

Prior: 862.5%

13

Cyclists Injured

Prior: 17-23.5%

390

Motorists Injured

Prior: 428-8.9%

2

Other Injured

Prior: 5-60.0%

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 · Mode classified from person records (driver/passenger → motorist; pedestrian; bicyclist → cyclist; in-line skater / unspecified → other)

When Crashes Happen

The temporal patterns of crashes remained largely consistent year-over-year, with Tuesday being the peak day for crashes in both 2024 (200 crashes) and 2023 (203 crashes). However, the peak hour for collisions shifted one hour later, from 4 PM in the prior year (118 crashes) to 5 PM in the current year (111 crashes). Crash counts on Fridays saw a 16.7% increase from 168 to 196 incidents.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)

Crash Severity Breakdown

Crash severity saw minimal change year-over-year, with the number of fatal crashes holding steady at 4 for both periods, representing 0.3% of all crashes in each year. The proportion of crashes resulting in serious injury also remained unchanged at 2.1%. There was a shift within non-serious injury categories, as crashes classified with 'Minor Injury' decreased from 17.3% to 15.6% of the total, while 'Possible Injury' crashes increased from 6.4% to 7.5%.

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Fatal4fatal crashes0.3%
0.0%prior 4
Serious Injury26serious injury crashes2.1%
0.0%prior 26
Minor Injury194minor injury crashes15.6%
-10.6%prior 217
Possible Injury93possible injury crashes7.5%
16.3%prior 80
No Injury894no injury crashes72.1%
1.1%prior 884

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 · KABCO injury classification scale

Severity Distribution (Crash Events)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 · Most severe injury per crash record

Top Contributing Factors

The leading contributing factors remained consistent, with 'Inattention' and 'Failed to yield right of way' being the top improper driving actions after 'No improper driving' in both years. The count of crashes attributed to 'Inattention' rose by 15.4%, from 208 to 240 incidents. Conversely, crashes where 'No improper driving' was noted decreased by 16.9% in count, from 308 to 256. Crashes involving 'Disregarded traffic signs, signals, road markings' saw a notable 31.3% increase in count, rising from 32 to 42.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

No improper driving256 (20.6%)-16.9%prior 308
Inattention240 (19.4%)15.4%prior 208
Failed to yield right of way145 (11.7%)-4.0%prior 151
Followed too closely83 (6.7%)-8.8%prior 91
Operating vehicle in erratic, reckless, careless, negligent or aggressive manner51 (4.1%)13.3%prior 45
Distracted45 (3.6%)9.8%prior 41
Failure to keep in proper lane or running off road45 (3.6%)45.2%prior 31
Other improper action43 (3.5%)53.6%prior 28
Disregarded traffic signs, signals, road markings42 (3.4%)31.3%prior 32
Swerving or avoiding due to wind, slippery surface, vehicle, object, vulnerable user in roadway24 (1.9%)33.3%prior 18

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 · Officer-reported primary contributory cause per crash

Road & Environmental Conditions

The majority of crashes in both periods occurred in 'Daylight' (71.9% in 2024 vs. 72.1% in 2023) and on 'Dry' road surfaces (82.3% vs. 82.4%). There was a slight shift in nighttime crash conditions, with the proportion of crashes on dark, unlighted roadways increasing from 6.1% to 7.3% of all incidents. Crashes on wet road surfaces decreased from 188 to 169 incidents.

Weather

Clear896 (72.6%)
1.6%prior 882
Cloudy107 (8.7%)
0.9%prior 106
Rain67 (5.4%)
-13.0%prior 77
Cloudy/Rain44 (3.6%)
12.8%prior 39
Clear/Cloudy27 (2.2%)
8.0%prior 25
Clear/Unknown26 (2.1%)
-29.7%prior 37
Snow15 (1.2%)
200.0%prior 5
Rain/Cloudy8 (0.6%)
-46.7%prior 15
Clear/Clear5 (0.4%)
Cloudy/Unknown5 (0.4%)
-68.8%prior 16

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 · Weather condition at time of crash

Lighting

Daylight891 (72.1%)
-1.3%prior 903
Dark - lighted roadway182 (14.7%)
-10.8%prior 204
Dark - roadway not lighted90 (7.3%)
16.9%prior 77
Dusk42 (3.4%)
27.3%prior 33
Dawn20 (1.6%)
11.1%prior 18
Dark - unknown roadway lighting11 (0.9%)
83.3%prior 6

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 · Lighting condition field

Road Surface

Dry1,021 (82.7%)
-1.1%prior 1,032
Wet169 (13.7%)
-10.1%prior 188
Snow30 (2.4%)
328.6%prior 7
Ice9 (0.7%)
50.0%prior 6
Other2 (0.2%)
Water (standing, moving)2 (0.2%)
Sand, mud, dirt, oil, gravel1 (0.1%)
Slush1 (0.1%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 · Road surface condition field

Vehicles & Demographics

The makes of vehicles involved in crashes were stable, with Toyota, Ford, and Honda remaining the top three most common makes in both years. An analysis of persons involved shows a demographic shift, with the 65+ age group increasing from 478 to 504 individuals, a 5.4% rise. Conversely, the number of persons in the 16-20 age group involved in crashes decreased by 5.3%, from 285 to 270.

Top Vehicle Makes (2,334 vehicles)

1
TOYOTA393 (16.8%)
0.3%prior 392
2
FORD287 (12.3%)
-3.7%prior 298
3
HONDA246 (10.5%)
5.6%prior 233
4
CHEVROLET192 (8.2%)
-13.5%prior 222
5
JEEP118 (5.1%)
-6.3%prior 126
6
NISSAN107 (4.6%)
-16.4%prior 128
7
HYUNDAI102 (4.4%)
47.8%prior 69
8
SUBARU86 (3.7%)
36.5%prior 63
9
GMC77 (3.3%)
-6.1%prior 82
10
BMW61 (2.6%)
-1.6%prior 62

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 · Vehicle unit records

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

Sex Distribution (2,678 persons with recorded sex)

Male1,577 (58.9%)
9.4%prior 1,442
Female1,101 (41.1%)
-7.6%prior 1,192

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 · Person-level records linked to crash events

Speed Limit Zones

There was a noticeable shift in crashes toward 30 mph speed zones, which saw a 16.6% increase from 368 to 429 incidents year-over-year, while crashes in 35 mph zones saw a slight 3.0% decrease. The distribution of fatal crashes across speed zones also changed; in 2024, one fatal crash occurred in a 55 mph zone where none were recorded in 2023. In contrast, 2023 saw a fatal crash in a 45 mph zone where none occurred in 2024.

Fatal crashes by zone: 30 mph: 1 of 429 (0.233%) · 35 mph: 2 of 288 (0.694%) · 55 mph: 1 of 87 (1.149%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31 · 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: 2024-01-01 through 2024-12-31
  • Report generated: June 21, 2026

Data Coverage

  • Reporting period: 2024-01-01 through 2024-12-31 (366 days)
  • Geographic scope: BARNSTABLE, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 1,240
  • Total persons involved: 2,910
  • Total vehicles involved: 2,334

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). "BARNSTABLE, MA Crash Intelligence Report: 2024." Published June 21, 2026. Reporting period: 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31. Data source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV), Arcgis_yearly Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/massachusetts/barnstable/2024-annual-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

ThatCarHitMe.com · An Injuria.ai Company

Barnstable, MA Crash Report — 2024 | ThatCarHitMe.com