Monthly Traffic Safety Analysis

34 CRASHES IN
SOMERSET, MA
SEPTEMBER 2023

All metrics benchmarked againstSeptember 2022

In September 2023, Somerset experienced 34 crashes, a 20.93% decrease from the 43 crashes recorded in September 2022. The most significant year-over-year shift was the increase in total fatalities from zero in September 2022 to two in September 2023, associated with one fatal crash.

34

-20.9%was 43

Total Crash Events

2

Persons Killed

8

-46.7%was 15

Persons Injured

0

-100.0%was 2

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.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records

Trend Summary

Overall, crashes in Somerset decreased year-over-year, with 34 crashes in September 2023 compared to 43 in September 2022, representing a 20.93% reduction. Despite this decrease in total crashes, fatalities increased from 0 to 2, while total injuries decreased by 46.67%, from 15 to 8.

Vulnerable Road User Casualties

2

Motorists Killed

Prior: 0%

8

Motorists Injured

Prior: 13-38.5%

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Mode classified from person records (driver/passenger → motorist; pedestrian; bicyclist → cyclist; in-line skater / unspecified → other)

When Crashes Happen

The peak day for crashes shifted from Saturday in September 2022, which saw 9 crashes, to Friday in September 2023, with 8 crashes. The peak hour for crashes also changed, with September 2023 experiencing the highest frequency at 8 AM (5 crashes), whereas September 2022's peak was at 2 PM (5 crashes).

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)

Crash Severity Breakdown

A significant change in crash severity was observed, with 1 fatal crash resulting in 2 fatalities in September 2023, compared to zero fatal crashes and zero fatalities in September 2022. The proportion of injury crashes (minor and possible injury combined) decreased from 14 out of 43 crashes (32.6%) in September 2022 to 5 out of 34 crashes (14.7%) in September 2023.

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

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Fatal1fatal crashes2.9%
Minor Injury4minor injury crashes11.8%
-63.6%prior 11
Possible Injury1possible injury crashes2.9%
-66.7%prior 3
No Injury28no injury crashes82.4%
16.7%prior 24

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · KABCO injury classification scale

Severity Distribution (Crash Events)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Most severe injury per crash record

Top Contributing Factors

The leading contributing factor, 'Followed too closely,' increased by 5 crashes, from 4 in September 2022 to 9 in September 2023, representing a 125% increase in count. Conversely, 'No improper driving' decreased by 4 crashes, from 10 to 6, a 40% decrease in count. 'Failed to yield right of way' also saw a decrease of 2 crashes, from 8 to 6, a 25% decrease in count.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

Followed too closely9 (26.5%)
No improper driving6 (17.6%)-40.0%prior 10
Failed to yield right of way6 (17.6%)-25.0%prior 8
Inattention3 (8.8%)-50.0%prior 6
Failure to keep in proper lane or running off road3 (8.8%)
Other improper action2 (5.9%)
Distracted1 (2.9%)
Wrong side or wrong way1 (2.9%)
Driving too fast for conditions1 (2.9%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Officer-reported primary contributory cause per crash

Road & Environmental Conditions

Crashes occurring in 'Clear' weather conditions decreased by 11, from 37 in September 2022 to 26 in September 2023. Conversely, crashes during rainy conditions (Rain and Cloudy/Rain combined) increased by 4, from 4 to 8. Crashes in 'Daylight' conditions decreased by 8, from 33 to 25, while the number of crashes in 'Dark' conditions (lighted and not lighted combined) remained stable at 7 for both periods.

Weather

Clear26 (76.5%)
-29.7%prior 37
Rain6 (17.6%)
Cloudy/Rain2 (5.9%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Weather condition at time of crash

Lighting

Daylight25 (73.5%)
-24.2%prior 33
Dark - lighted roadway6 (17.6%)
20.0%prior 5
Dawn2 (5.9%)
Dark - roadway not lighted1 (2.9%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Lighting condition field

Road Surface

Dry25 (73.5%)
-30.6%prior 36
Wet8 (23.5%)
14.3%prior 7
Sand, mud, dirt, oil, gravel1 (2.9%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Road surface condition field

Vehicles & Demographics

The total number of vehicles involved in crashes decreased by 18, from 84 in September 2022 to 66 in September 2023. Honda vehicles involved in crashes decreased by 6, from 15 to 9, while Ford vehicles increased by 2, from 8 to 10. Chevrolet vehicles involved in crashes increased by 4, from 4 to 8.

Top Vehicle Makes (66 vehicles)

1
FORD10 (15.2%)
25.0%prior 8
2
HONDA9 (13.6%)
-40.0%prior 15
3
CHEVROLET8 (12.1%)
4
TOYOTA7 (10.6%)
-36.4%prior 11
5
NISSAN6 (9.1%)
20.0%prior 5
6
DODGE4 (6.1%)
7
SUBARU2 (3%)
8
CHRYSLER2 (3%)
9
VOLKSWAGEN2 (3%)
10
HYUNDAI2 (3%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Vehicle unit records

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

Sex Distribution (77 persons with recorded sex)

Male44 (57.1%)
2.3%prior 43
Female33 (42.9%)
0.0%prior 33

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · Person-level records linked to crash events

Speed Limit Zones

In September 2023, one fatal crash occurred in a 20 mph speed zone, whereas no fatal crashes were recorded in any speed zone during September 2022. Crashes occurring in 30 mph zones decreased by 10, from 21 in September 2022 to 11 in September 2023, a 47.6% decrease in count. Conversely, crashes in 40 mph zones increased by 5, from 4 to 9, a 125% increase in count.

Fatal crashes by zone: 20 mph: 1 of 1 (100%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30 · 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: 2023-09-01 through 2023-09-30
  • Report generated: June 21, 2026

Data Coverage

  • Reporting period: 2023-09-01 through 2023-09-30 (30 days)
  • Geographic scope: SOMERSET, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 34
  • Total persons involved: 80
  • Total vehicles involved: 66

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). "SOMERSET, MA Crash Intelligence Report: September 2023." Published June 21, 2026. Reporting period: 2023-09-01 to 2023-09-30. Data source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV), Arcgis_yearly Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/massachusetts/somerset/september-2023-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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Somerset, MA Crash Report — September 2023 | ThatCarHitMe.com