Monthly Traffic Safety Analysis

64 CRASHES IN
CHELMSFORD, MA
OCTOBER 2024

All metrics benchmarked againstOctober 2023

Total crashes in Chelmsford decreased by 3.03% year-over-year, from 66 crashes in October 2023 to 64 crashes in October 2024. Notably, there were no traffic fatalities in October 2024, a significant improvement from the 1 fatality recorded in October 2023. Total injuries also saw a substantial decrease, falling from 34 to 25.

64

-3.0%was 66

Total Crash Events

0

-100.0%was 1

Persons Killed

25

-26.5%was 34

Persons Injured

2

-33.3%was 3

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.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-10-01 to 2024-10-31 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records

Trend Summary

Overall, crash data for Chelmsford shows a downward trend year-over-year. Total crashes decreased by 3.03%, from 66 to 64, while total injuries dropped by 26.47%, from 34 to 25. Most significantly, fatalities decreased by 100%, with no fatalities reported in the current period compared to one in the prior period.

2

Hit-and-Run Crashes — October 2024

-33.3% vs prior (3)

Hit-and-run crashes decreased from 3 in October 2023 to 2 in October 2024, representing a 33.3% decrease in count. The hit-and-run rate also trended downward, decreasing from 4.5% of total crashes in the prior period to 3.1% in the current period.

Vulnerable Road User Casualties

0

Pedestrians Killed

Prior: 00.0%

0

Cyclists Killed

Prior: 00.0%

0

Motorists Killed

Prior: 1-100.0%

1

Pedestrians Injured

Prior: 0%

1

Cyclists Injured

Prior: 10.0%

23

Motorists Injured

Prior: 33-30.3%

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-10-01 to 2024-10-31 · 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 Wednesday in October 2023 (14 crashes) to Thursday in October 2024 (14 crashes), with the same number of incidents. The peak hour remained 4 PM in both periods, with crashes at that hour increasing slightly from 9 in the prior period to 10 in the current period.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-10-01 to 2024-10-31 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-10-01 to 2024-10-31 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)

Crash Severity Breakdown

The fatal crash rate decreased from 1.52% in October 2023 to 0% in October 2024, as no fatalities were reported in the current period compared to one in the prior period. Total injuries decreased by 26.47%, from 34 to 25. The proportion of crashes resulting in minor or possible injuries remained relatively stable, accounting for 31.25% of crashes in the current period compared to 31.82% in the prior period.

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Minor Injury10minor injury crashes15.6%
-23.1%prior 13
Possible Injury10possible injury crashes15.6%
150.0%prior 4
No Injury44no injury crashes68.8%
-4.3%prior 46

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-10-01 to 2024-10-31 · KABCO injury classification scale

Severity Distribution (Crash Events)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-10-01 to 2024-10-31 · Most severe injury per crash record

Top Contributing Factors

The top contributing factor shifted from 'No improper driving' in the prior period (15 crashes, 22.7% share) to 'Followed too closely' in the current period (16 crashes, 25% share). 'Followed too closely' crashes increased by 33.3% in count, from 12 to 16, while 'No improper driving' crashes decreased by 26.7% in count, from 15 to 11. 'Failed to yield right of way' also saw an increase of 11.1% in count, from 9 to 10 crashes.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

Followed too closely16 (25%)33.3%prior 12
No improper driving11 (17.2%)-26.7%prior 15
Failed to yield right of way10 (15.6%)11.1%prior 9
Disregarded traffic signs, signals, road markings5 (7.8%)
Exceeded authorized speed limit4 (6.3%)
Inattention3 (4.7%)-40.0%prior 5
Other improper action3 (4.7%)
History heart/epilepsy/fainting2 (3.1%)
Distracted2 (3.1%)
Failure to keep in proper lane or running off road2 (3.1%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-10-01 to 2024-10-31 · Officer-reported primary contributory cause per crash

Road & Environmental Conditions

Crashes occurring under clear weather conditions increased from 49 in October 2023 to 55 in October 2024. The number of crashes on dry road surfaces remained constant at 59 for both periods, while crashes on wet surfaces decreased from 7 to 5. Crashes during daylight hours also remained stable at 46, though crashes in 'Dark - lighted roadway' conditions decreased from 9 to 7.

Weather

Clear/Clear42 (65.6%)
82.6%prior 23
Clear13 (20.3%)
-50.0%prior 26
Cloudy/Cloudy2 (3.1%)
Fog, smog, smoke1 (1.6%)
Fog, smog, smoke/Cloudy1 (1.6%)
Rain1 (1.6%)
Rain/Cloudy1 (1.6%)
Rain/Rain1 (1.6%)
Cloudy/Clear1 (1.6%)
Cloudy/Rain1 (1.6%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-10-01 to 2024-10-31 · Weather condition at time of crash

Lighting

Daylight46 (71.9%)
0.0%prior 46
Dark - lighted roadway7 (10.9%)
-22.2%prior 9
Dark - roadway not lighted6 (9.4%)
0.0%prior 6
Dusk3 (4.7%)
Dawn2 (3.1%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-10-01 to 2024-10-31 · Lighting condition field

Road Surface

Dry59 (92.2%)
0.0%prior 59
Wet5 (7.8%)
-28.6%prior 7

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-10-01 to 2024-10-31 · Road surface condition field

Vehicles & Demographics

The top vehicle make involved in crashes shifted from TOYOTA (26 crashes) in the prior period to HONDA (24 crashes) in the current period. HONDA vehicles involved in crashes increased significantly by 140% in count, from 10 to 24, while TOYOTA saw a decrease from 26 to 21. CHEVROLET entered the top three makes with 14 crashes in the current period, replacing FORD.

Top Vehicle Makes (133 vehicles)

1
HONDA24 (18%)
140.0%prior 10
2
TOYOTA21 (15.8%)
-19.2%prior 26
3
CHEVROLET14 (10.5%)
55.6%prior 9
4
FORD9 (6.8%)
-10.0%prior 10
5
HYUNDAI8 (6%)
6
NISSAN7 (5.3%)
0.0%prior 7
7
VOLKSWAGEN5 (3.8%)
8
JEEP4 (3%)
-33.3%prior 6
9
BMW4 (3%)
-20.0%prior 5
10
SUBARU4 (3%)
-20.0%prior 5

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-10-01 to 2024-10-31 · Vehicle unit records

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

Sex Distribution (150 persons with recorded sex)

Male96 (64.0%)
18.5%prior 81
Female54 (36.0%)
-14.3%prior 63

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-10-01 to 2024-10-31 · Person-level records linked to crash events

Speed Limit Zones

Crashes in the 65 MPH speed zone increased from 22 in the prior period to 28 in the current period. There was a notable decrease in crashes in the 35 MPH zone, falling from 14 to 6. The single fatal crash in the prior period occurred in a 65 MPH zone, with no fatal crashes reported in any speed zone in the current period.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-10-01 to 2024-10-31 · 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: 2024-10-01 through 2024-10-31
  • Report generated: June 21, 2026

Data Coverage

  • Reporting period: 2024-10-01 through 2024-10-31 (31 days)
  • Geographic scope: CHELMSFORD, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 64
  • Total persons involved: 158
  • Total vehicles involved: 133

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). "CHELMSFORD, MA Crash Intelligence Report: October 2024." Published June 21, 2026. Reporting period: 2024-10-01 to 2024-10-31. Data source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV), Arcgis_yearly Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/massachusetts/chelmsford/october-2024-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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Chelmsford, MA Crash Report — October 2024 | ThatCarHitMe.com