Yearly Traffic Safety Analysis

227 CRASHES IN
FREETOWN, MA
2023

All metrics benchmarked against2022

In 2023, Freetown recorded 227 total vehicle crashes, a 3% decrease from the 234 crashes documented in 2022. While the overall crash count declined, the number of people injured in these incidents rose by 53.2%, from 47 in the prior year to 72 in the current period. The number of fatalities remained unchanged at two individuals in both years.

227

-3.0%was 234

Total Crash Events

2

Persons Killed

72

53.2%was 47

Persons Injured

16

60.0%was 10

Hit-and-Run Crashes

Note: "Persons Killed" (2) 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. 7 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

The total number of crashes in Freetown saw a slight year-over-year decrease of 3%, falling from 234 in 2022 to 227 in 2023. Despite this overall reduction in collisions, the number of reported injuries increased by 53.2%, from 47 to 72. The number of fatalities held steady at two for both periods.

16

Hit-and-Run Crashes — 2023

60.0% vs prior (10)

The number of hit-and-run incidents increased significantly year-over-year. In 2023, there were 16 hit-and-run crashes, a 60% increase from the 10 incidents recorded in 2022. This pushed the hit-and-run rate up from 4.3% of all crashes in the prior period to 7.0% in the current period.

Vulnerable Road User Casualties

0

Pedestrians Killed

Prior: 00.0%

0

Cyclists Killed

Prior: 00.0%

2

Motorists Killed

Prior: 20.0%

4

Pedestrians Injured

Prior: 1300.0%

1

Cyclists Injured

Prior: 0%

67

Motorists Injured

Prior: 4645.7%

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 analysis shows a shift in crash patterns between the two periods. In 2022, the peak day for crashes was Monday with 45 incidents, while in 2023, Monday and Thursday shared the peak with 35 crashes each. The peak hour also shifted from 7 a.m. in 2022 (21 crashes) to 8 a.m. in 2023 (17 crashes), indicating a change in the timing of morning commute collisions.

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

While the number of fatal crashes decreased from two in 2022 to one in 2023, the overall severity of non-fatal crashes increased. The proportion of crashes resulting in any injury rose from 16.7% in 2022 to 24.7% in 2023. This was driven by a tripling of serious injury crashes, from 3 to 9, and an increase in minor injury crashes from 26 to 33.

Severity is per crash event (most severe injury). 1 fatal crash events resulted in 2 persons killed.

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Fatal1fatal crashes0.4%
-50.0%prior 2
Serious Injury9serious injury crashes4%
200.0%prior 3
Minor Injury33minor injury crashes14.5%
26.9%prior 26
Possible Injury14possible injury crashes6.2%
40.0%prior 10
No Injury163no injury crashes71.8%
-12.4%prior 186

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 leading contributing factors remained broadly consistent, though with some changes in volume. 'No improper driving' was the most cited factor in both periods, with its count increasing from 70 crashes in 2022 to 82 in 2023. 'Inattention' was the second-most cited factor, holding steady at 22 crashes in both years. Crashes attributed to 'Driving too fast for conditions' decreased in count from 15 to 11, while those involving 'Exceeded authorized speed limit' increased from 5 to 8.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

No improper driving82 (36.1%)17.1%prior 70
Inattention22 (9.7%)0.0%prior 22
Failure to keep in proper lane or running off road17 (7.5%)13.3%prior 15
Failed to yield right of way13 (5.7%)-13.3%prior 15
Driving too fast for conditions11 (4.8%)-26.7%prior 15
Exceeded authorized speed limit8 (3.5%)60.0%prior 5
Operating vehicle in erratic, reckless, careless, negligent or aggressive manner8 (3.5%)-27.3%prior 11
Fatigued/asleep7 (3.1%)
Swerving or avoiding due to wind, slippery surface, vehicle, object, vulnerable user in roadway7 (3.1%)16.7%prior 6
Over-correcting/over-steering7 (3.1%)-12.5%prior 8

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

Crashes in 2023 occurred more frequently in favorable conditions compared to 2022. The proportion of collisions happening during daylight hours rose from 50.4% in 2022 to 59.9% in 2023. Similarly, crashes on dry road surfaces increased from 73.9% to 82.4% of the total. Collisions during rainy conditions decreased in count from 24 to 16, and crashes on wet roads fell from 42 to 34.

Weather

Clear163 (73.4%)
0.6%prior 162
Cloudy20 (9.0%)
5.3%prior 19
Rain16 (7.2%)
-33.3%prior 24
Cloudy/Rain5 (2.3%)
0.0%prior 5
Clear/Other3 (1.4%)
Snow3 (1.4%)
-66.7%prior 9
Fog, smog, smoke2 (0.9%)
Rain/Cloudy2 (0.9%)
Sleet, hail (freezing rain or drizzle)2 (0.9%)
Cloudy/Clear1 (0.5%)

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

Lighting

Daylight136 (60.4%)
15.3%prior 118
Dark - roadway not lighted60 (26.7%)
-18.9%prior 74
Dark - lighted roadway13 (5.8%)
-45.8%prior 24
Dawn11 (4.9%)
83.3%prior 6
Dark - unknown roadway lighting3 (1.3%)
Dusk2 (0.9%)
-77.8%prior 9

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

Road Surface

Dry187 (82.7%)
8.1%prior 173
Wet34 (15.0%)
-19.0%prior 42
Snow2 (0.9%)
-83.3%prior 12
Water (standing, moving)1 (0.4%)
Sand, mud, dirt, oil, gravel1 (0.4%)
Ice1 (0.4%)

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, Ford, and Honda—remained the same in both years, with Toyota holding steady at 46 vehicles and both Ford and Honda seeing an increase in involvement. Analysis of persons involved in crashes shows a notable shift in age demographics. The number of individuals in the 16-20 age group involved in crashes increased by 56.8%, from 37 in 2022 to 58 in 2023, while involvement for the 26-34 age group decreased from 89 to 72.

Top Vehicle Makes (334 vehicles)

1
TOYOTA46 (13.8%)
0.0%prior 46
2
FORD42 (12.6%)
27.3%prior 33
3
HONDA38 (11.4%)
22.6%prior 31
4
CHEVROLET22 (6.6%)
-15.4%prior 26
5
NISSAN19 (5.7%)
11.8%prior 17
6
HYUNDAI16 (4.8%)
0.0%prior 16
7
SUBARU13 (3.9%)
85.7%prior 7
8
KIA12 (3.6%)
50.0%prior 8
9
JEEP12 (3.6%)
-7.7%prior 13
10
VOLKSWAGEN10 (3%)

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

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

Sex Distribution (361 persons with recorded sex)

Male222 (61.5%)
-2.6%prior 228
Female139 (38.5%)
-3.5%prior 144

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

The distribution of crashes across speed zones showed a decrease in high-speed areas. Collisions in 65 mph zones, the most frequent location for crashes in both periods, dropped from 74 in 2022 to 64 in 2023. Correspondingly, the number of fatal crashes recorded in 65 mph zones fell from two to one. Crashes in 30 mph zones saw a slight increase from 44 to 47 incidents.

Fatal crashes by zone: 65 mph: 1 of 64 (1.563%)

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: FREETOWN, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 227
  • Total persons involved: 402
  • Total vehicles involved: 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). "FREETOWN, 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/freetown/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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Freetown, MA Crash Report — 2023 | ThatCarHitMe.com