Yearly Traffic Safety Analysis

146 CRASHES IN
PEPPERELL, MA
2025

All metrics benchmarked against2024

In Pepperell, total traffic crashes decreased by 9.3%, from 161 incidents in 2024 to 146 in 2025. Despite the overall reduction in collisions, the most notable year-over-year shift was the emergence of traffic fatalities, with two deaths recorded in 2025 compared to none in the prior year.

146

-9.3%was 161

Total Crash Events

2

Persons Killed

29

-29.3%was 41

Persons Injured

3

200.0%was 1

Hit-and-Run Crashes

Note: "Persons Killed" (2) counts individual fatalities across all crash events. "Fatal" in the severity table below (2) counts crash events where at least one fatality occurred. A single crash can result in multiple fatalities. 5 crashes with unreported severity are not shown in the severity breakdown.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2025-01-01 to 2025-12-31 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records

Trend Summary

Overall traffic safety trends show a decrease in the volume of crashes and injuries year-over-year. Total crashes fell by 9.3% from 161 to 146, and the number of people injured decreased by 29.3% from 41 to 29. However, this positive trend is contrasted by an increase in fatalities, which rose from zero in 2024 to two in 2025.

3

Hit-and-Run Crashes — 2025

200.0% vs prior (1)

Hit-and-run crashes showed an upward trend. The number of hit-and-run incidents increased from one in 2024 to three in 2025. As a result, the hit-and-run rate, measured as a percentage of total crashes, also rose from 0.6% to 2.1% year-over-year.

Vulnerable Road User Casualties

0

Pedestrians Killed

Prior: 00.0%

0

Cyclists Killed

Prior: 00.0%

2

Motorists Killed

Prior: 0%

1

Pedestrians Injured

Prior: 0%

1

Cyclists Injured

Prior: 10.0%

27

Motorists Injured

Prior: 40-32.5%

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2025-01-01 to 2025-12-31 · Mode classified from person records (driver/passenger → motorist; pedestrian; bicyclist → cyclist; in-line skater / unspecified → other)

When Crashes Happen

The timing of crashes shifted between the two periods. In 2025, the peak day for crashes was Monday with 28 incidents, a shift from Tuesday (33 incidents) in 2024. Similarly, the peak hour for collisions moved an hour later, from the 4 p.m. hour in 2024 (15 crashes) to the 5 p.m. hour in 2025 (14 crashes).

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2025-01-01 to 2025-12-31 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2025-01-01 to 2025-12-31 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)

Crash Severity Breakdown

Crash severity worsened year-over-year with the introduction of fatal incidents. In 2025, two fatal crashes occurred, accounting for 1.4% of all crashes, whereas no fatal crashes were recorded in 2024. The proportion of crashes resulting in any type of injury remained stable, accounting for 17.1% of crashes in 2025 (25 incidents) compared to 17.4% in 2024 (28 incidents).

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Fatal2fatal crashes1.4%
Serious Injury3serious injury crashes2.1%
0.0%prior 3
Minor Injury14minor injury crashes9.6%
-12.5%prior 16
Possible Injury8possible injury crashes5.5%
-11.1%prior 9
No Injury114no injury crashes78.1%
-13.6%prior 132

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2025-01-01 to 2025-12-31 · KABCO injury classification scale

Severity Distribution (Crash Events)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2025-01-01 to 2025-12-31 · Most severe injury per crash record

Top Contributing Factors

The leading contributing factors to crashes remained consistent, with 'No improper driving' and 'Inattention' ranking first and second in both years. However, the count of crashes attributed to 'Inattention' decreased significantly, dropping from 40 incidents in 2024 to 27 in 2025. In contrast, crashes involving 'Failed to yield right of way' saw a slight increase in count from 12 to 13 incidents.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

No improper driving45 (30.8%)-2.2%prior 46
Inattention27 (18.5%)-32.5%prior 40
Failed to yield right of way13 (8.9%)8.3%prior 12
Operating vehicle in erratic, reckless, careless, negligent or aggressive manner8 (5.5%)-20.0%prior 10
Failure to keep in proper lane or running off road8 (5.5%)-11.1%prior 9
Followed too closely6 (4.1%)
Other improper action5 (3.4%)0.0%prior 5
Driving too fast for conditions4 (2.7%)
Fatigued/asleep4 (2.7%)
Over-correcting/over-steering4 (2.7%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2025-01-01 to 2025-12-31 · Officer-reported primary contributory cause per crash

Road & Environmental Conditions

While most crashes in both years occurred during daylight and in clear weather, there were shifts in conditional patterns. The proportion of crashes in clear weather decreased from 66.5% in 2024 to 54.8% in 2025. Conversely, the share of crashes occurring in daylight conditions increased from 57.8% to 63.0%. The count of crashes on non-dry road surfaces remained nearly unchanged, with 38 incidents in 2025 compared to 41 in 2024.

Weather

Clear80 (55.2%)
-25.2%prior 107
Cloudy36 (24.8%)
16.1%prior 31
Rain7 (4.8%)
-12.5%prior 8
Snow7 (4.8%)
Rain/Cloudy6 (4.1%)
Snow/Sleet, hail (freezing rain or drizzle)2 (1.4%)
Cloudy/Rain2 (1.4%)
-60.0%prior 5
Severe crosswinds2 (1.4%)
Fog, smog, smoke/Rain1 (0.7%)
Clear/Cloudy1 (0.7%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2025-01-01 to 2025-12-31 · Weather condition at time of crash

Lighting

Daylight92 (63.0%)
-1.1%prior 93
Dark - lighted roadway28 (19.2%)
-15.2%prior 33
Dark - roadway not lighted14 (9.6%)
-22.2%prior 18
Dark - unknown roadway lighting8 (5.5%)
-33.3%prior 12
Dusk3 (2.1%)
Dawn1 (0.7%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2025-01-01 to 2025-12-31 · Lighting condition field

Road Surface

Dry107 (73.8%)
-10.8%prior 120
Wet25 (17.2%)
-10.7%prior 28
Snow9 (6.2%)
50.0%prior 6
Ice2 (1.4%)
-71.4%prior 7
Slush2 (1.4%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2025-01-01 to 2025-12-31 · Road surface condition field

Vehicles & Demographics

The vehicle makes most frequently involved in crashes changed year-over-year. Ford became the top-ranked make in 2025 with 32 vehicles involved, overtaking Toyota, which was ranked first in 2024 with 57 vehicles. An analysis of persons involved in crashes shows a significant drop in the 65+ age group, from 48 individuals in 2024 to 22 in 2025.

Top Vehicle Makes (214 vehicles)

1
FORD32 (15%)
-13.5%prior 37
2
TOYOTA26 (12.1%)
-54.4%prior 57
3
HONDA20 (9.3%)
-20.0%prior 25
4
CHEVROLET16 (7.5%)
-30.4%prior 23
5
JEEP13 (6.1%)
62.5%prior 8
6
SUBARU13 (6.1%)
62.5%prior 8
7
HYUNDAI10 (4.7%)
100.0%prior 5
8
MAZDA8 (3.7%)
60.0%prior 5
9
BMW8 (3.7%)
10
DODGE6 (2.8%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2025-01-01 to 2025-12-31 · Vehicle unit records

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

Sex Distribution (256 persons with recorded sex)

Male151 (59.0%)
-10.7%prior 169
Female105 (41.0%)
-11.8%prior 119

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2025-01-01 to 2025-12-31 · Person-level records linked to crash events

Speed Limit Zones

Crash distribution across speed zones was largely consistent, with the 30 mph zone having the highest number of crashes in both 2025 (61 crashes) and 2024 (64 crashes). A notable change was the increase in crashes within 45 mph zones, which rose from 14 to 21. Critically, one fatal crash was recorded in a 40 mph zone in 2025, while no fatal crashes were documented in any speed zone during the prior year.

Fatal crashes by zone: 40 mph: 1 of 36 (2.778%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2025-01-01 to 2025-12-31 · 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: 2025-01-01 through 2025-12-31
  • Report generated: June 21, 2026

Data Coverage

  • Reporting period: 2025-01-01 through 2025-12-31 (365 days)
  • Geographic scope: PEPPERELL, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 146
  • Total persons involved: 263
  • Total vehicles involved: 214

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). "PEPPERELL, MA Crash Intelligence Report: 2025." Published June 21, 2026. Reporting period: 2025-01-01 to 2025-12-31. Data source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV), Arcgis_yearly Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/massachusetts/pepperell/2025-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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Pepperell, MA Crash Report — 2025 | ThatCarHitMe.com