Yearly Traffic Safety Analysis

122 CRASHES IN
SOUTHWICK, MA
2023

All metrics benchmarked against2022

In Southwick, total traffic crashes increased from 113 in 2022 to 122 in 2023, an 8.0% rise. While the number of fatalities fell from 3 to 1, the number of people injured in crashes rose from 31 to 43. A notable change in crash causation was a significant increase in incidents attributed to 'Inattention', which more than doubled from 11 to 23 year-over-year.

122

8.0%was 113

Total Crash Events

1

-66.7%was 3

Persons Killed

43

38.7%was 31

Persons Injured

8

-20.0%was 10

Hit-and-Run Crashes

Note: "Persons Killed" (1) 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. 4 crashes with unreported severity are not shown in the severity breakdown.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records

Trend Summary

Crash data for Southwick indicates a rising trend in collision frequency, with total crashes increasing by 8.0% from 113 in 2022 to 122 in 2023. This increase was accompanied by a 38.7% rise in persons injured, from 31 to 43. However, the number of fatalities saw a notable decrease, falling from 3 in the prior year to 1 in the current year.

8

Hit-and-Run Crashes — 2023

-20.0% vs prior (10)

Hit-and-run incidents trended downward in 2023 compared to the prior year. The absolute number of hit-and-run crashes decreased from 10 in 2022 to 8 in 2023. As a proportion of all collisions, the hit-and-run rate also declined from 8.8% to 6.6% year-over-year.

Vulnerable Road User Casualties

0

Pedestrians Killed

Prior: 1-100.0%

0

Cyclists Killed

Prior: 00.0%

1

Motorists Killed

Prior: 2-50.0%

2

Pedestrians Injured

Prior: 1100.0%

1

Cyclists Injured

Prior: 10.0%

40

Motorists Injured

Prior: 2937.9%

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · 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 2023, the peak day for collisions was Wednesday with 26 incidents, a change from 2022 when Saturday was the peak day with 25 incidents. The busiest time of day also moved from the 12 PM hour in 2022 (13 crashes) to the 2 PM hour in 2023 (14 crashes).

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)

Crash Severity Breakdown

The severity of crashes changed year-over-year, with a decrease in the most severe outcomes. Fatal crashes fell from 3 in 2022 to 1 in 2023, causing the fatal crash rate to drop from 2.7% to 0.8% of all incidents. In contrast, the number of crashes resulting in any injury (Serious, Minor, or Possible) increased from 24 to 35, and the total number of people injured rose from 31 to 43.

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Fatal1fatal crashes0.8%
-66.7%prior 3
Serious Injury2serious injury crashes1.6%
0.0%prior 2
Minor Injury20minor injury crashes16.4%
17.6%prior 17
Possible Injury13possible injury crashes10.7%
160.0%prior 5
No Injury82no injury crashes67.2%
3.8%prior 79

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · KABCO injury classification scale

Severity Distribution (Crash Events)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Most severe injury per crash record

Top Contributing Factors

The primary contributing factors to crashes shifted significantly between 2022 and 2023. Crashes attributed to 'Inattention' more than doubled in count, rising from 11 to 23, making it the leading factor in 2023. Similarly, incidents involving 'Followed too closely' doubled from 10 to 20. Conversely, crashes where 'Driving too fast for conditions' was a factor decreased by 66.7%, from 12 incidents in 2022 to 4 in 2023.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

Inattention23 (18.9%)109.1%prior 11
No improper driving21 (17.2%)-12.5%prior 24
Followed too closely20 (16.4%)100.0%prior 10
Failed to yield right of way9 (7.4%)-35.7%prior 14
Failure to keep in proper lane or running off road8 (6.6%)-11.1%prior 9
Operating vehicle in erratic, reckless, careless, negligent or aggressive manner7 (5.7%)-41.7%prior 12
Fatigued/asleep6 (4.9%)
Distracted6 (4.9%)0.0%prior 6
Other improper action5 (4.1%)
Driving too fast for conditions4 (3.3%)-66.7%prior 12

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Officer-reported primary contributory cause per crash

Road & Environmental Conditions

A larger share of crashes in 2023 occurred in clear weather and on dry roads compared to the previous year. Crashes on dry roads accounted for 83.6% of all incidents in 2023, up from 65.5% in 2022. Correspondingly, crashes on adverse road surfaces like snow, ice, or slush dropped from a combined 20 incidents in 2022 to just 4 in 2023.

Weather

Clear92 (75.4%)
29.6%prior 71
Cloudy14 (11.5%)
40.0%prior 10
Cloudy/Rain3 (2.5%)
Rain3 (2.5%)
-50.0%prior 6
Fog, smog, smoke2 (1.6%)
Sleet, hail (freezing rain or drizzle)/Snow2 (1.6%)
Clear/Other1 (0.8%)
Clear/Cloudy1 (0.8%)
Rain/Cloudy1 (0.8%)
Rain/Sleet, hail (freezing rain or drizzle)1 (0.8%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Weather condition at time of crash

Lighting

Daylight85 (69.7%)
14.9%prior 74
Dark - lighted roadway20 (16.4%)
42.9%prior 14
Dark - roadway not lighted8 (6.6%)
-46.7%prior 15
Dusk6 (4.9%)
-14.3%prior 7
Dawn3 (2.5%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Lighting condition field

Road Surface

Dry102 (83.6%)
37.8%prior 74
Wet16 (13.1%)
0.0%prior 16
Snow3 (2.5%)
-70.0%prior 10
Ice1 (0.8%)
-87.5%prior 8

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Road surface condition field

Vehicles & Demographics

The makes of vehicles involved in crashes saw a shift in rankings. The number of Toyota vehicles involved in crashes increased from 17 in 2022 to 32 in 2023, making it the most frequent make. Regarding persons involved, there was a notable increase in the 45-54 age group, which grew from 18 individuals to 35, and the 65+ age group, which rose from 27 to 41.

Top Vehicle Makes (206 vehicles)

1
TOYOTA32 (15.5%)
88.2%prior 17
2
FORD24 (11.7%)
-4.0%prior 25
3
HONDA23 (11.2%)
76.9%prior 13
4
CHEVROLET21 (10.2%)
61.5%prior 13
5
NISSAN18 (8.7%)
50.0%prior 12
6
SUBARU14 (6.8%)
16.7%prior 12
7
HYUNDAI10 (4.9%)
-16.7%prior 12
8
JEEP6 (2.9%)
9
ACURA5 (2.4%)
10
DODGE5 (2.4%)
-28.6%prior 7

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Vehicle unit records

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

Sex Distribution (242 persons with recorded sex)

Male138 (57.0%)
29.0%prior 107
Female104 (43.0%)
10.6%prior 94

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Person-level records linked to crash events

Speed Limit Zones

The 35 mph speed zone continued to be the most common location for crashes, with the count increasing from 55 incidents in 2022 to 70 in 2023. The single fatal crash in 2023 occurred in a 35 mph zone. This differs from 2022, where the two fatal crashes with recorded speed limits occurred in 30 mph and 45 mph zones.

Fatal crashes by zone: 35 mph: 1 of 70 (1.429%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · 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: 2023-01-01 through 2023-12-31
  • Report generated: June 21, 2026

Data Coverage

  • Reporting period: 2023-01-01 through 2023-12-31 (365 days)
  • Geographic scope: SOUTHWICK, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 122
  • Total persons involved: 260
  • Total vehicles involved: 206

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). "SOUTHWICK, MA Crash Intelligence Report: 2023." Published June 21, 2026. Reporting period: 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31. Data source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV), Arcgis_yearly Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/massachusetts/southwick/2023-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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Southwick, MA Crash Report — 2023 | ThatCarHitMe.com