Monthly Traffic Safety Analysis

280 CRASHES IN
LOWELL, MA
OCTOBER 2024

All metrics benchmarked againstOctober 2023

In October 2024, Lowell, MA experienced 280 total crashes, a 27.27% increase compared to the 220 crashes recorded in October 2023. While total crashes and injuries rose significantly, a notable positive shift was the absence of traffic fatalities in October 2024, down from one fatality in October 2023.

280

27.3%was 220

Total Crash Events

0

-100.0%was 1

Persons Killed

121

72.9%was 70

Persons Injured

41

70.8%was 24

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 · 2024-10-01 to 2024-10-31 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records

Trend Summary

The overall trend indicates a significant increase in crash activity year-over-year. Total crashes rose by 27.27%, from 220 in October 2023 to 280 in October 2024. Concurrently, total injuries increased by 72.86%, from 70 to 121, while fatalities decreased from 1 to 0.

41

Hit-and-Run Crashes — October 2024

70.8% vs prior (24)

Hit-and-run incidents increased significantly year-over-year, with the number of crashes rising from 24 in October 2023 to 41 in October 2024. This corresponds to an increase in the hit-and-run rate, which went up from 10.9% of total crashes in the prior period to 14.6% 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%

7

Pedestrians Injured

Prior: 70.0%

9

Cyclists Injured

Prior: 4125.0%

105

Motorists Injured

Prior: 5881.0%

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 temporal patterns for crashes shifted between the two periods. In October 2024, the peak day for crashes was Thursday with 52 incidents, while in October 2023, Monday saw the highest count with 42 crashes. The peak hour also changed slightly, with 3 PM recording the most crashes (24) in the current period, compared to 4 PM (25 crashes) in the prior 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 severity distribution of crashes saw shifts, most notably a decrease in fatalities from one in October 2023 to zero in October 2024. Serious injuries (Severity A) increased from 2 (0.9% of crashes) to 5 (1.8% of crashes) year-over-year. Minor injuries (Severity B) also rose from 29 (13.2% of crashes) to 45 (16.1% of crashes), and possible injuries (Severity C) increased from 23 (10.5% of crashes) to 26 (9.3% of crashes).

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Serious Injury5serious injury crashes1.8%
150.0%prior 2
Minor Injury45minor injury crashes16.1%
55.2%prior 29
Possible Injury26possible injury crashes9.3%
13.0%prior 23
No Injury194no injury crashes69.3%
56.5%prior 124

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

Several contributing factors saw significant increases in crash counts year-over-year. Crashes attributed to 'Disregarded traffic signs, signals, road markings' surged from 3 in October 2023 to 14 in October 2024, an increase of 366.67%. 'Driving too fast for conditions' also rose substantially from 1 to 4 crashes, representing a 300% increase. Additionally, 'Followed too closely' increased by 50%, from 10 to 15 crashes.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

No improper driving90 (32.1%)45.2%prior 62
Inattention23 (8.2%)43.8%prior 16
Failed to yield right of way20 (7.1%)11.1%prior 18
Followed too closely15 (5.4%)50.0%prior 10
Disregarded traffic signs, signals, road markings14 (5%)
Failure to keep in proper lane or running off road11 (3.9%)37.5%prior 8
Other improper action5 (1.8%)
Distracted4 (1.4%)
Driving too fast for conditions4 (1.4%)
Fatigued/asleep3 (1.1%)

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

Adverse weather conditions contributed to fewer crashes in October 2024 compared to the prior year. Crashes occurring in 'Rain' decreased from 32 to 7, while crashes on 'Wet' road surfaces dropped from 44 to 16. Conversely, crashes in 'Clear' weather conditions increased from 156 to 241, and crashes on 'Dry' road surfaces rose from 172 to 263.

Weather

Clear241 (87.0%)
54.5%prior 156
Cloudy21 (7.6%)
23.5%prior 17
Rain7 (2.5%)
-78.1%prior 32
Clear/Clear5 (1.8%)
Cloudy/Rain1 (0.4%)
-83.3%prior 6
Rain/Cloudy1 (0.4%)
-83.3%prior 6
Rain/Rain1 (0.4%)

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

Lighting

Daylight193 (69.4%)
27.8%prior 151
Dark - lighted roadway68 (24.5%)
15.3%prior 59
Dusk8 (2.9%)
60.0%prior 5
Dark - roadway not lighted5 (1.8%)
Dawn3 (1.1%)
Dark - unknown roadway lighting1 (0.4%)

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

Road Surface

Dry263 (94.3%)
52.9%prior 172
Wet16 (5.7%)
-63.6%prior 44

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

Vehicles & Demographics

The total number of vehicles involved in crashes increased by 23.78%, from 429 in October 2023 to 531 in October 2024. Toyota became the most frequently involved make with 96 vehicles in the current period, surpassing Honda which had 84 vehicles in the prior period but decreased to 79. The age group 26-34 remained the most represented in both periods, with their involvement increasing from 78 persons in October 2023 to 129 persons in October 2024.

Top Vehicle Makes (531 vehicles)

1
TOYOTA96 (18.1%)
26.3%prior 76
2
HONDA79 (14.9%)
-6.0%prior 84
3
FORD49 (9.2%)
8.9%prior 45
4
CHEVROLET33 (6.2%)
10.0%prior 30
5
NISSAN31 (5.8%)
6.9%prior 29
6
MAZDA19 (3.6%)
216.7%prior 6
7
JEEP19 (3.6%)
46.2%prior 13
8
HYUNDAI18 (3.4%)
38.5%prior 13
9
SUBARU17 (3.2%)
54.5%prior 11
10
GMC14 (2.6%)
55.6%prior 9

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

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

Sex Distribution (643 persons with recorded sex)

Male341 (53.0%)
36.9%prior 249
Female302 (47.0%)
71.6%prior 176

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

There was a notable shift in the speed limit zones where crashes predominantly occurred. In October 2023, the 30 mph speed limit zone recorded the highest number of crashes with 149, while in October 2024, the 25 mph zone became dominant with 233 crashes. The sole fatal crash in the prior period occurred in a 45 mph zone, whereas no fatalities were recorded across any speed zones 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: LOWELL, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 280
  • Total persons involved: 734
  • Total vehicles involved: 531

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). "LOWELL, 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/lowell/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

ThatCarHitMe.com · An Injuria.ai Company

Lowell, MA Crash Report — October 2024 | ThatCarHitMe.com