Monthly Traffic Safety Analysis

109 CRASHES IN
FITCHBURG, MA
JUNE 2023

All metrics benchmarked againstJune 2022

In June 2023, Fitchburg experienced 109 total crashes, a 34.6% increase compared to the 81 crashes reported in June 2022. A notable year-over-year shift was the increase in hit-and-run crashes, rising from 0 in June 2022 to 10 in June 2023.

109

34.6%was 81

Total Crash Events

0

Persons Killed

26

44.4%was 18

Persons Injured

10

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. 10 crashes with unreported severity are not shown in the severity breakdown.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-06-01 to 2023-06-30 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records

Trend Summary

Overall, crash activity in Fitchburg increased year-over-year. Total crashes rose by 28, from 81 in June 2022 to 109 in June 2023, representing a 34.6% increase. Similarly, total injuries increased by 44.4%, from 18 to 26, while fatalities remained at zero in both periods.

10

Hit-and-Run Crashes — June 2023

9.2% hit-and-run rate this period vs 0.0% prior. Prior period: 0.

Vulnerable Road User Casualties

0

Pedestrians Killed

Prior: 00.0%

0

Cyclists Killed

Prior: 00.0%

0

Motorists Killed

Prior: 00.0%

2

Pedestrians Injured

Prior: 1100.0%

1

Cyclists Injured

Prior: 0%

23

Motorists Injured

Prior: 1735.3%

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-06-01 to 2023-06-30 · Mode classified from person records (driver/passenger → motorist; pedestrian; bicyclist → cyclist; in-line skater / unspecified → other)

When Crashes Happen

The temporal patterns of crashes shifted year-over-year. Friday became the peak day for crashes in June 2023 with 24 incidents, up from 9 on Fridays in June 2022, while Thursday's peak in the prior period (17 crashes) decreased to 14. The peak crash hour also shifted from 4 PM (10 crashes) in June 2022 to 1 PM (14 crashes) in June 2023.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-06-01 to 2023-06-30 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-06-01 to 2023-06-30 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)

Crash Severity Breakdown

There were no fatalities in either period. While serious injury crashes decreased from 2 in June 2022 to 1 in June 2023, minor injury crashes increased from 8 to 11, and possible injury crashes rose from 3 to 9. Overall, injury-involved crashes increased by 61.5%, from 13 to 21.

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Serious Injury1serious injury crashes0.9%
-50.0%prior 2
Minor Injury11minor injury crashes10.1%
37.5%prior 8
Possible Injury9possible injury crashes8.3%
200.0%prior 3
No Injury78no injury crashes71.6%
21.9%prior 64

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-06-01 to 2023-06-30 · KABCO injury classification scale

Severity Distribution (Crash Events)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-06-01 to 2023-06-30 · Most severe injury per crash record

Top Contributing Factors

Among contributing factors, 'No improper driving' increased by 12 crashes (80%) from 15 to 27, becoming the most frequent factor in the current period. 'Followed too closely' also saw a significant rise of 7 crashes (77.8%), going from 9 to 16. Conversely, 'Disregarded traffic signs, signals, road markings' decreased by 4 crashes (-80%), from 5 to 1.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

No improper driving27 (24.8%)80.0%prior 15
Inattention20 (18.3%)33.3%prior 15
Followed too closely16 (14.7%)77.8%prior 9
Failure to keep in proper lane or running off road7 (6.4%)
Other improper action5 (4.6%)-28.6%prior 7
Swerving or avoiding due to wind, slippery surface, vehicle, object, vulnerable user in roadway5 (4.6%)
Failed to yield right of way4 (3.7%)-33.3%prior 6
Fatigued/asleep2 (1.8%)
Disregarded traffic signs, signals, road markings1 (0.9%)-80.0%prior 5
Driving too fast for conditions1 (0.9%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-06-01 to 2023-06-30 · Officer-reported primary contributory cause per crash

Road & Environmental Conditions

Adverse weather conditions were associated with a notable increase in crashes, rising from 9 incidents in June 2022 to 40 in June 2023, primarily due to an increase in rain-related crashes from 2 to 17. The number of crashes on wet road surfaces also increased significantly from 4 to 26. Daylight conditions remained dominant for crashes, increasing from 72 to 89 incidents.

Weather

Clear69 (63.3%)
-4.2%prior 72
Rain17 (15.6%)
Cloudy12 (11.0%)
140.0%prior 5
Cloudy/Rain4 (3.7%)
Clear/Cloudy4 (3.7%)
Cloudy/Severe crosswinds1 (0.9%)
Clear/Rain1 (0.9%)
Rain/Cloudy1 (0.9%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-06-01 to 2023-06-30 · Weather condition at time of crash

Lighting

Daylight89 (82.4%)
23.6%prior 72
Dark - lighted roadway7 (6.5%)
40.0%prior 5
Dark - roadway not lighted5 (4.6%)
Dusk4 (3.7%)
Dawn3 (2.8%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-06-01 to 2023-06-30 · Lighting condition field

Road Surface

Dry82 (75.2%)
6.5%prior 77
Wet26 (23.9%)
Water (standing, moving)1 (0.9%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-06-01 to 2023-06-30 · Road surface condition field

Vehicles & Demographics

The total number of vehicles involved in crashes increased by 60, from 139 in June 2022 to 199 in June 2023. Toyota and Honda remained the top two vehicle makes involved in crashes across both periods. Subaru saw a notable increase in involvement, rising from 9 vehicles to 16.

Top Vehicle Makes (199 vehicles)

1
TOYOTA31 (15.6%)
34.8%prior 23
2
HONDA26 (13.1%)
13.0%prior 23
3
SUBARU16 (8%)
77.8%prior 9
4
FORD14 (7%)
16.7%prior 12
5
CHEVROLET12 (6%)
0.0%prior 12
6
NISSAN11 (5.5%)
-8.3%prior 12
7
HYUNDAI9 (4.5%)
80.0%prior 5
8
JEEP8 (4%)
-11.1%prior 9
9
KIA7 (3.5%)
10
DODGE6 (3%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-06-01 to 2023-06-30 · Vehicle unit records

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

Sex Distribution (238 persons with recorded sex)

Female125 (52.5%)
98.4%prior 63
Male113 (47.5%)
36.1%prior 83

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-06-01 to 2023-06-30 · Person-level records linked to crash events

Speed Limit Zones

Crashes in the 35 mph speed zone saw the largest increase, rising from 5 in June 2022 to 17 in June 2023, a 240% increase. The 25 mph zone also experienced a substantial rise from 35 to 52 crashes, an increase of 48.6%. Conversely, crashes in the 15 mph zone decreased from 5 to 1.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-06-01 to 2023-06-30 · 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: 2023-06-01 through 2023-06-30
  • Report generated: June 21, 2026

Data Coverage

  • Reporting period: 2023-06-01 through 2023-06-30 (30 days)
  • Geographic scope: FITCHBURG, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 109
  • Total persons involved: 265
  • Total vehicles involved: 199

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). "FITCHBURG, MA Crash Intelligence Report: June 2023." Published June 21, 2026. Reporting period: 2023-06-01 to 2023-06-30. Data source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV), Arcgis_yearly Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/massachusetts/fitchburg/june-2023-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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Fitchburg, MA Crash Report — June 2023 | ThatCarHitMe.com