Monthly Traffic Safety Analysis

10 CRASHES IN
HARVARD, MA
FEBRUARY 2024

All metrics benchmarked againstFebruary 2023

In February 2024, HARVARD experienced 10 total crashes, a significant decrease of 54.55% compared to the 22 crashes reported in February 2023. Total injuries also saw a substantial reduction, falling from 7 in the prior period to 1 in the current period. This marks a notable year-over-year improvement in crash frequency and injury outcomes.

10

-54.5%was 22

Total Crash Events

0

Persons Killed

1

-85.7%was 7

Persons Injured

0

-100.0%was 1

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 · 2024-02-01 to 2024-02-29 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records

Trend Summary

Overall, crash incidents in HARVARD demonstrated a falling trend year-over-year, with total crashes decreasing from 22 in February 2023 to 10 in February 2024. This represents a 54.55% reduction in the total number of crashes. Fatalities remained at zero in both periods, while total injuries decreased from 7 to 1.

Vulnerable Road User Casualties

0

Motorists Killed

Prior: 00.0%

1

Motorists Injured

Prior: 7-85.7%

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-02-01 to 2024-02-29 · Mode classified from person records (driver/passenger → motorist; pedestrian; bicyclist → cyclist; in-line skater / unspecified → other)

When Crashes Happen

The peak day for crashes remained Friday in both periods, with 3 crashes in February 2024 and 5 crashes in February 2023. However, the peak hour for crashes shifted from 10 p.m. with 2 crashes in February 2023 to 5 p.m. with 2 crashes in February 2024.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-02-01 to 2024-02-29 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-02-01 to 2024-02-29 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)

Crash Severity Breakdown

There were no fatal crashes reported in either February 2024 or February 2023. Total injuries decreased from 7 in February 2023 to 1 in February 2024. The prior period included 5 minor injuries and 1 possible injury, while the current period reported 1 possible injury.

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Possible Injury1possible injury crashes10%
0.0%prior 1
No Injury9no injury crashes90%
-40.0%prior 15

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-02-01 to 2024-02-29 · KABCO injury classification scale

Severity Distribution (Crash Events)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-02-01 to 2024-02-29 · Most severe injury per crash record

Top Contributing Factors

Several common contributing factors saw reductions in crash counts year-over-year. Crashes attributed to 'No improper driving' decreased from 7 in February 2023 to 1 in February 2024, a reduction of 6 crashes. 'Driving too fast for conditions' decreased by 4 crashes, from 6 to 2, and 'Followed too closely' decreased by 2 crashes, from 4 to 2. 'Glare' remained stable at 1 crash in both periods, while factors like 'Other improper action' (2 crashes) and 'Exceeded authorized speed limit' (1 crash) were present in the prior period but not the current.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

Followed too closely2 (20%)
Driving too fast for conditions2 (20%)-66.7%prior 6
Glare1 (10%)
Made an improper turn1 (10%)
No improper driving1 (10%)-85.7%prior 7
Swerving or avoiding due to wind, slippery surface, vehicle, object, vulnerable user in roadway1 (10%)
Failed to yield right of way1 (10%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-02-01 to 2024-02-29 · Officer-reported primary contributory cause per crash

Road & Environmental Conditions

The proportion of crashes occurring in adverse weather conditions decreased year-over-year, with 30% of current crashes occurring in non-clear weather compared to 45.5% in the prior period. Similarly, crashes on non-dry road surfaces decreased from 50% in February 2023 to 30% in February 2024. The proportion of crashes occurring in non-daylight conditions remained relatively stable, at 40% in February 2024 and 40.9% in February 2023.

Weather

Clear7 (70.0%)
-36.4%prior 11
Clear/Blowing sand, snow1 (10.0%)
Cloudy/Snow1 (10.0%)
Rain1 (10.0%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-02-01 to 2024-02-29 · Weather condition at time of crash

Lighting

Daylight6 (60.0%)
-53.8%prior 13
Dark - roadway not lighted2 (20.0%)
-60.0%prior 5
Dark - lighted roadway1 (10.0%)
Dawn1 (10.0%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-02-01 to 2024-02-29 · Lighting condition field

Road Surface

Dry7 (70.0%)
-36.4%prior 11
Wet2 (20.0%)
Sand, mud, dirt, oil, gravel1 (10.0%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-02-01 to 2024-02-29 · Road surface condition field

Vehicles & Demographics

Top Vehicle Makes (20 vehicles)

1
VOLVO2 (10%)
2
CHEVROLET2 (10%)
-60.0%prior 5
3
MAZDA2 (10%)
4
NISSAN2 (10%)
5
SUBARU2 (10%)
6
TOYOTA2 (10%)
-71.4%prior 7
7
HYUNDAI2 (10%)
8
KIA2 (10%)
9
DODGE1 (5%)
10
CADI1 (5%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-02-01 to 2024-02-29 · Vehicle unit records

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

Sex Distribution (21 persons with recorded sex)

Male11 (52.4%)
-65.6%prior 32
Female10 (47.6%)
-28.6%prior 14

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-02-01 to 2024-02-29 · Person-level records linked to crash events

Speed Limit Zones

Crashes occurring in 55 mph speed zones saw a notable decrease, falling from 13 crashes in February 2023 to 4 crashes in February 2024. Crashes in 65 mph zones remained constant at 3 in both periods, and 25 mph zones also remained constant at 1 crash. The prior period included 2 crashes in 30 mph zones and 2 crashes in 35 mph zones, which were not present in the current period's data.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-02-01 to 2024-02-29 · 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: 2024-02-01 through 2024-02-29
  • Report generated: June 21, 2026

Data Coverage

  • Reporting period: 2024-02-01 through 2024-02-29 (29 days)
  • Geographic scope: HARVARD, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 10
  • Total persons involved: 22
  • Total vehicles involved: 20

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). "HARVARD, MA Crash Intelligence Report: February 2024." Published June 21, 2026. Reporting period: 2024-02-01 to 2024-02-29. Data source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV), Arcgis_yearly Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/massachusetts/harvard/february-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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Harvard, MA Crash Report — February 2024 | ThatCarHitMe.com