Monthly Traffic Safety Analysis

31 CRASHES IN
NORWOOD, MA
JANUARY 2024

All metrics benchmarked againstJanuary 2023

In Norwood, January 2024 saw a notable increase in total crashes compared to January 2023, rising from 20 to 31 crashes, which represents a 55% increase. The most significant year-over-year shift was the substantial rise in total crashes and a change in the primary contributing factors. There were no fatalities reported in either period.

31

55.0%was 20

Total Crash Events

0

Persons Killed

6

20.0%was 5

Persons Injured

0

Fatal Crash Events

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

Trend Summary

Overall, crash incidents in Norwood are on an upward trend year-over-year for the month of January. The total number of crashes increased from 20 in January 2023 to 31 in January 2024, marking a 55% rise in crash frequency. This indicates a significant increase in crash activity compared to the prior year.

Vulnerable Road User Casualties

0

Motorists Killed

Prior: 00.0%

6

Motorists Injured

Prior: 520.0%

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-01-01 to 2024-01-31 · Mode classified from person records (driver/passenger → motorist; pedestrian; bicyclist → cyclist; in-line skater / unspecified → other)

When Crashes Happen

The peak day for crashes remained Tuesday in both January 2023 and January 2024, with 6 crashes and 8 crashes respectively. However, the peak hour for crashes shifted from 5p with 3 crashes in January 2023 to 11a with 4 crashes in January 2024. This change suggests a shift in the busiest time of day for crash occurrences.

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

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

Crash Severity Breakdown

There were no fatalities reported in either January 2023 or January 2024. Total injuries increased from 5 in January 2023 to 6 in January 2024. The proportion of crashes resulting in minor injuries decreased from 15% (3 crashes) in January 2023 to 12.9% (4 crashes) in January 2024, while crashes with no injuries saw a slight increase in proportion from 85% to 87.1%.

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Minor Injury4minor injury crashes12.9%
33.3%prior 3
No Injury27no injury crashes87.1%
58.8%prior 17

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

Severity Distribution (Crash Events)

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

Top Contributing Factors

The top contributing factor, 'No improper driving', saw a significant increase from 3 crashes in January 2023 to 11 crashes in January 2024, now representing a 35.5% share of factors. 'Failed to yield right of way' crashes decreased from 5 in January 2023 to 4 in January 2024, losing its top position. 'Followed too closely' crashes increased from 2 to 5, and 'Inattention' crashes rose from 1 to 4, indicating growth in these specific factors.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

No improper driving11 (35.5%)
Followed too closely5 (16.1%)
Failed to yield right of way4 (12.9%)-20.0%prior 5
Inattention4 (12.9%)
Operating vehicle in erratic, reckless, careless, negligent or aggressive manner2 (6.5%)
Failure to keep in proper lane or running off road1 (3.2%)
Swerving or avoiding due to wind, slippery surface, vehicle, object, vulnerable user in roadway1 (3.2%)
Wrong side or wrong way1 (3.2%)
Driving too fast for conditions1 (3.2%)

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

Road & Environmental Conditions

Crashes occurring in clear weather conditions increased from 7 in January 2023 to 13 in January 2024, becoming the most frequent weather condition. The number of crashes on dry road surfaces rose significantly from 7 in January 2023 to 17 in January 2024, while crashes on wet surfaces decreased from 12 to 7. There was also a notable shift in lighting conditions, with crashes during daylight hours increasing from 8 to 21, while those in dark-lighted roadway conditions decreased from 9 to 7.

Weather

Clear13 (41.9%)
85.7%prior 7
Cloudy6 (19.4%)
Snow4 (12.9%)
Rain3 (9.7%)
-50.0%prior 6
Snow/Sleet, hail (freezing rain or drizzle)2 (6.5%)
Cloudy/Rain1 (3.2%)
Sleet, hail (freezing rain or drizzle)1 (3.2%)
Clear/Unknown1 (3.2%)

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

Lighting

Daylight21 (67.7%)
162.5%prior 8
Dark - lighted roadway7 (22.6%)
-22.2%prior 9
Dawn2 (6.5%)
Dark - roadway not lighted1 (3.2%)

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

Road Surface

Dry17 (54.8%)
142.9%prior 7
Wet7 (22.6%)
-41.7%prior 12
Snow4 (12.9%)
Slush2 (6.5%)
Ice1 (3.2%)

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

Vehicles & Demographics

Top Vehicle Makes (56 vehicles)

1
HONDA9 (16.1%)
80.0%prior 5
2
FORD7 (12.5%)
3
TOYOTA5 (8.9%)
4
SUBARU4 (7.1%)
5
CHEVROLET3 (5.4%)
6
KIA3 (5.4%)
7
HYUNDAI3 (5.4%)
8
JEEP3 (5.4%)
9
MAZDA2 (3.6%)
10
VOLKSWAGEN2 (3.6%)

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

Sex Distribution (67 persons with recorded sex)

Male37 (55.2%)
27.6%prior 29
Female30 (44.8%)
76.5%prior 17

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

Speed Limit Zones

Crashes in 30 mph speed zones increased from 16 in January 2023 to 18 in January 2024. Crashes in 65 mph speed zones also saw an increase, from 1 crash in January 2023 to 4 crashes in January 2024. There were no fatal crashes reported in any speed zone during either the January 2023 or January 2024 period.

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

Data Coverage

  • Reporting period: 2024-01-01 through 2024-01-31 (31 days)
  • Geographic scope: NORWOOD, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 31
  • Total persons involved: 67
  • Total vehicles involved: 56

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). "NORWOOD, MA Crash Intelligence Report: January 2024." Published June 21, 2026. Reporting period: 2024-01-01 to 2024-01-31. Data source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV), Arcgis_yearly Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/massachusetts/norwood/january-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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Norwood, MA Crash Report — January 2024 | ThatCarHitMe.com