Yearly Traffic Safety Analysis

819 CRASHES IN
BRAINTREE, MA
2023

All metrics benchmarked against2022

In 2023, Braintree recorded 819 total traffic crashes, a 3.1% increase from the 794 crashes in 2022. While overall crashes rose slightly, the number of fatalities dropped from five to one. The most significant year-over-year shift was in hit-and-run incidents, which more than doubled from 28 in 2022 to 58 in 2023.

819

3.1%was 794

Total Crash Events

1

-80.0%was 5

Persons Killed

356

-4.0%was 371

Persons Injured

58

107.1%was 28

Hit-and-Run Crashes

Note: "Persons Killed" (1) counts individual fatalities across all crash events. "Fatal" in the severity table below (1) 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 · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records

Trend Summary

Overall crash trends present a mixed picture. Total crashes increased by 3.1% from 794 to 819 year-over-year. However, the severity of these incidents decreased, with total injuries falling by 4.0% from 371 to 356 and total fatalities decreasing from five to one.

58

Hit-and-Run Crashes — 2023

107.1% vs prior (28)

Hit-and-run crashes increased substantially between the two periods. The count of hit-and-run incidents more than doubled, rising from 28 in 2022 to 58 in 2023. Consequently, the hit-and-run rate as a percentage of total crashes also doubled, from 3.5% in 2022 to 7.1% in 2023.

Vulnerable Road User Casualties

0

Pedestrians Killed

Prior: 00.0%

0

Cyclists Killed

Prior: 00.0%

1

Motorists Killed

Prior: 5-80.0%

9

Pedestrians Injured

Prior: 4125.0%

3

Cyclists Injured

Prior: 250.0%

344

Motorists Injured

Prior: 364-5.5%

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Mode classified from person records (driver/passenger → motorist; pedestrian; bicyclist → cyclist; in-line skater / unspecified → other)

When Crashes Happen

Temporal crash patterns remained broadly consistent year-over-year. Friday was the peak day for crashes in both 2023 (138 crashes) and 2022 (132 crashes). The daily peak hour shifted slightly, moving from the 4 PM hour in 2022 (84 crashes) to the 5 PM hour in 2023 (90 crashes).

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)

Crash Severity Breakdown

The distribution of crash severity improved from 2022 to 2023. The number of fatal crashes decreased from five to one, and total fatalities dropped from five to one. The share of crashes resulting in no injury increased from 61.0% to 67.2%, while the share of minor injury crashes decreased from 14.4% to 12.2%.

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Fatal1fatal crashes0.1%
-80.0%prior 5
Serious Injury15serious injury crashes1.8%
-6.3%prior 16
Minor Injury100minor injury crashes12.2%
-12.3%prior 114
Possible Injury124possible injury crashes15.1%
2.5%prior 121
No Injury550no injury crashes67.2%
13.6%prior 484

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · KABCO injury classification scale

Severity Distribution (Crash Events)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Most severe injury per crash record

Top Contributing Factors

The top contributing factors saw a shift in ranking and volume between the two periods. Crashes attributed to 'Failed to yield right of way' increased in count by 54.8%, from 62 in 2022 to 96 in 2023, moving it from the third to the second most common factor. Conversely, crashes involving 'Inattention' decreased in count by 20.0% from 95 to 76. 'Followed too closely' remained the top factor, with its count increasing from 139 to 158.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

No improper driving181 (22.1%)9.7%prior 165
Followed too closely158 (19.3%)13.7%prior 139
Failed to yield right of way96 (11.7%)54.8%prior 62
Inattention76 (9.3%)-20.0%prior 95
Failure to keep in proper lane or running off road43 (5.3%)34.4%prior 32
Operating vehicle in erratic, reckless, careless, negligent or aggressive manner28 (3.4%)27.3%prior 22
Distracted24 (2.9%)9.1%prior 22
Driving too fast for conditions23 (2.8%)-8.0%prior 25
Disregarded traffic signs, signals, road markings22 (2.7%)-15.4%prior 26
Other improper action17 (2.1%)-41.4%prior 29

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Officer-reported primary contributory cause per crash

Road & Environmental Conditions

While most crashes in both years occurred in clear weather on dry roads, there was a notable increase in crashes under adverse conditions in 2023. The number of crashes occurring in rain increased from 53 to 95, and incidents on wet road surfaces rose from 129 to 170. The proportion of crashes in daylight was stable, at 61.7% in 2022 and 60.3% in 2023.

Weather

Clear538 (66.9%)
18.5%prior 454
Rain95 (11.8%)
79.2%prior 53
Cloudy79 (9.8%)
38.6%prior 57
Clear/Clear42 (5.2%)
-60.0%prior 105
Cloudy/Rain10 (1.2%)
-52.4%prior 21
Rain/Cloudy10 (1.2%)
42.9%prior 7
Rain/Rain8 (1.0%)
Snow6 (0.7%)
-66.7%prior 18
Clear/Cloudy2 (0.2%)
Rain/Severe crosswinds2 (0.2%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Weather condition at time of crash

Lighting

Daylight494 (60.4%)
0.8%prior 490
Dark - lighted roadway195 (23.8%)
8.3%prior 180
Dark - roadway not lighted69 (8.4%)
6.2%prior 65
Dusk39 (4.8%)
30.0%prior 30
Dawn16 (2.0%)
-27.3%prior 22
Dark - unknown roadway lighting4 (0.5%)
Other1 (0.1%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Lighting condition field

Road Surface

Dry638 (77.9%)
1.9%prior 626
Wet170 (20.8%)
31.8%prior 129
Water (standing, moving)3 (0.4%)
Ice3 (0.4%)
-70.0%prior 10
Sand, mud, dirt, oil, gravel2 (0.2%)
Other1 (0.1%)
Slush1 (0.1%)
-83.3%prior 6
Snow1 (0.1%)
-95.0%prior 20

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Road surface condition field

Vehicles & Demographics

The top three vehicle makes involved in crashes—Toyota, Honda, and Ford—remained consistent across both years. Analysis of persons involved in crashes shows a notable demographic shift, with the 65+ age group's involvement increasing from 159 individuals in 2022 to 201 in 2023, a 26.4% rise. Other age groups remained relatively stable in their representation.

Top Vehicle Makes (1,593 vehicles)

1
TOYOTA300 (18.8%)
7.5%prior 279
2
HONDA183 (11.5%)
-8.0%prior 199
3
FORD179 (11.2%)
14.0%prior 157
4
CHEVROLET117 (7.3%)
9.3%prior 107
5
JEEP104 (6.5%)
23.8%prior 84
6
NISSAN102 (6.4%)
-6.4%prior 109
7
SUBARU54 (3.4%)
17.4%prior 46
8
HYUNDAI44 (2.8%)
-18.5%prior 54
9
KIA42 (2.6%)
16.7%prior 36
10
VOLKSWAGEN41 (2.6%)
-4.7%prior 43

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Vehicle unit records

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

Sex Distribution (1,880 persons with recorded sex)

Male1,073 (57.1%)
4.8%prior 1,024
Female807 (42.9%)
6.9%prior 755

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Person-level records linked to crash events

Speed Limit Zones

There was a shift in where crashes occurred based on speed zones. In 2023, the highest number of crashes (285) was in 30 mph zones, an increase from 233 in 2022. Crashes in 55 mph zones decreased from 276 to 238. The single fatality in 2023 occurred in a 55 mph zone, whereas 2022's five fatalities were spread across four different speed zones (25, 30, 40, and 55 mph).

Fatal crashes by zone: 55 mph: 1 of 238 (0.42%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · 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: 2023-01-01 through 2023-12-31
  • Report generated: June 21, 2026

Data Coverage

  • Reporting period: 2023-01-01 through 2023-12-31 (365 days)
  • Geographic scope: BRAINTREE, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 819
  • Total persons involved: 2,049
  • Total vehicles involved: 1,593

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). "BRAINTREE, MA Crash Intelligence Report: 2023." Published June 21, 2026. Reporting period: 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31. Data source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV), Arcgis_yearly Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/massachusetts/braintree/2023-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

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Braintree, MA Crash Report — 2023 | ThatCarHitMe.com