Monthly Traffic Safety Analysis

40 CRASHES IN
CHARLTON, MA
AUGUST 2022

All metrics benchmarked againstAugust 2021

In August 2022, Charlton recorded 40 total crashes, marking a 21.57% decrease compared to the 51 crashes reported in August 2021. The most notable shift was the increase in total fatalities from 0 in August 2021 to 1 in August 2022. Total injuries also rose from 10 to 15 year-over-year.

40

-21.6%was 51

Total Crash Events

1

Persons Killed

15

50.0%was 10

Persons Injured

2

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.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records

Trend Summary

Total crashes in Charlton showed a downward trend year-over-year, decreasing by 21.57% from 51 crashes in August 2021 to 40 crashes in August 2022. Despite this overall reduction in crash volume, fatalities increased from 0 to 1 during the same period. Total injuries also saw an increase, rising from 10 to 15.

2

Hit-and-Run Crashes — August 2022

0.0% vs prior (2)

The number of hit-and-run crashes remained constant at 2 in both August 2021 and August 2022. However, due to a decrease in overall crashes, the hit-and-run rate increased from 3.9% in August 2021 to 5% in August 2022.

Vulnerable Road User Casualties

1

Motorists Killed

Prior: 0%

15

Motorists Injured

Prior: 1050.0%

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Mode classified from person records (driver/passenger → motorist; pedestrian; bicyclist → cyclist; in-line skater / unspecified → other)

When Crashes Happen

The peak day for crashes shifted from Saturday, with 11 crashes in August 2021, to Thursday, with 9 crashes in August 2022. The peak hour for crashes also changed, moving from 1 p.m. with 7 crashes in August 2021 to 5 p.m. with 5 crashes in August 2022.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)

Crash Severity Breakdown

Fatal crashes increased from 0 in August 2021 to 1 in August 2022, resulting in a fatal crash rate of 2.5% in the current period. Serious injury crashes decreased from 2 (3.9% share) to 1 (2.5% share), while minor injury crashes increased from 3 (5.9% share) to 8 (20% share). Possible injury crashes decreased from 3 (5.9% share) to 1 (2.5% share) year-over-year.

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Fatal1fatal crashes2.5%
Serious Injury1serious injury crashes2.5%
-50.0%prior 2
Minor Injury8minor injury crashes20%
166.7%prior 3
Possible Injury1possible injury crashes2.5%
-66.7%prior 3
No Injury29no injury crashes72.5%
-32.6%prior 43

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · KABCO injury classification scale

Severity Distribution (Crash Events)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Most severe injury per crash record

Top Contributing Factors

Crashes attributed to 'No improper driving' decreased by 6, from 13 in August 2021 to 7 in August 2022. 'Followed too closely' also saw a decrease of 6 crashes, from 12 to 6. Conversely, crashes involving 'Operating vehicle in erratic, reckless, careless, negligent or aggressive manner' increased by 3 crashes, from 1 to 4 year-over-year.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

No improper driving7 (17.5%)-46.2%prior 13
Inattention6 (15%)0.0%prior 6
Followed too closely6 (15%)-50.0%prior 12
Operating vehicle in erratic, reckless, careless, negligent or aggressive manner4 (10%)
Visibility obstructed2 (5%)
Failure to keep in proper lane or running off road2 (5%)
Other improper action2 (5%)
Fatigued/asleep2 (5%)
Failed to yield right of way2 (5%)
Over-correcting/over-steering1 (2.5%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Officer-reported primary contributory cause per crash

Road & Environmental Conditions

Crashes occurring in 'Clear' weather conditions decreased from 40 in August 2021 to 34 in August 2022. Similarly, crashes on 'Dry' road surfaces decreased from 44 to 38. Crashes during 'Daylight' conditions also saw a reduction, from 38 to 31 year-over-year.

Weather

Clear34 (85.0%)
-15.0%prior 40
Cloudy4 (10.0%)
Cloudy/Rain2 (5.0%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Weather condition at time of crash

Lighting

Daylight31 (77.5%)
-18.4%prior 38
Dark - roadway not lighted6 (15.0%)
-33.3%prior 9
Dark - lighted roadway3 (7.5%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Lighting condition field

Road Surface

Dry38 (95.0%)
-13.6%prior 44
Wet2 (5.0%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Road surface condition field

Vehicles & Demographics

The total number of vehicles involved in crashes decreased from 100 in August 2021 to 72 in August 2022. The top vehicle make, Toyota, saw its involvement decrease from 15 vehicles to 10 vehicles. Ford also experienced a reduction, from 12 vehicles to 9 vehicles involved in crashes.

Top Vehicle Makes (72 vehicles)

1
TOYOTA10 (13.9%)
-33.3%prior 15
2
FORD9 (12.5%)
-25.0%prior 12
3
CHEVROLET7 (9.7%)
0.0%prior 7
4
HONDA7 (9.7%)
-41.7%prior 12
5
NISSAN4 (5.6%)
6
SUBARU4 (5.6%)
7
FRHT4 (5.6%)
8
VOLKSWAGEN2 (2.8%)
9
AUDI2 (2.8%)
10
DODGE2 (2.8%)
-60.0%prior 5

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Vehicle unit records

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

Sex Distribution (76 persons with recorded sex)

Male44 (57.9%)
-40.5%prior 74
Female32 (42.1%)
-30.4%prior 46

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Person-level records linked to crash events

Speed Limit Zones

Crashes in the 65 mph speed limit zone decreased from 19 in August 2021 to 15 in August 2022, but this zone recorded 1 fatal crash in the current period compared to 0 previously. Crashes in the 5 mph zone decreased from 5 to 1, while crashes in the 25 mph zone increased from 2 to 5. The 35 mph zone also saw an increase in crashes from 4 to 7.

Fatal crashes by zone: 65 mph: 1 of 15 (6.667%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · 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: 2022-08-01 through 2022-08-31
  • Report generated: June 21, 2026

Data Coverage

  • Reporting period: 2022-08-01 through 2022-08-31 (31 days)
  • Geographic scope: CHARLTON, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 40
  • Total persons involved: 80
  • Total vehicles involved: 72

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). "CHARLTON, MA Crash Intelligence Report: August 2022." Published June 21, 2026. Reporting period: 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31. Data source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV), Arcgis_yearly Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/massachusetts/charlton/august-2022-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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Charlton, MA Crash Report — August 2022 | ThatCarHitMe.com