Monthly Traffic Safety Analysis

12,315 CRASHES IN
MASSACHUSETTS, MA
NOVEMBER 2023

All metrics benchmarked againstNovember 2022

In November 2023, there were 12,315 total crashes recorded in Massachusetts, representing a 1.1% increase from the 12,184 crashes in November 2022. Despite the slight rise in total collisions, the most significant year-over-year change was a substantial decrease in traffic fatalities. The number of persons killed in crashes fell by 42.4%, from 33 in the prior period to 19 in the current period.

12,315

1.1%was 12,184

Total Crash Events

19

-42.4%was 33

Persons Killed

3,557

-0.7%was 3,582

Persons Injured

1,111

20.6%was 921

Hit-and-Run Crashes

Note: "Persons Killed" (19) counts individual fatalities across all crash events. "Fatal" in the severity table below (18) counts crash events where at least one fatality occurred. A single crash can result in multiple fatalities. 642 crashes with unreported severity are not shown in the severity breakdown.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-11-01 to 2023-11-30 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records

Trend Summary

Comparing November 2023 to the same month in 2022, the overall number of crashes remained relatively stable, increasing by approximately 1.1% from 12,184 to 12,315. However, the severity of crash outcomes improved notably. Total injuries saw a slight decrease of 0.7% from 3,582 to 3,557, while total fatalities dropped significantly by 42.4% from 33 to 19.

1,111

Hit-and-Run Crashes — November 2023

20.6% vs prior (921)

Hit-and-run incidents increased significantly in November 2023 compared to the same month in the prior year. The total count of hit-and-run crashes rose by 20.6%, from 921 to 1,111. This increase is also reflected in the hit-and-run rate, which climbed from 7.6% to 9.0% of all crashes, indicating an upward trend for this type of collision.

Vulnerable Road User Casualties

5

Pedestrians Killed

Prior: 9-44.4%

0

Cyclists Killed

Prior: 00.0%

13

Motorists Killed

Prior: 24-45.8%

1

Other Killed

Prior: 0%

149

Pedestrians Injured

Prior: 190-21.6%

60

Cyclists Injured

Prior: 67-10.4%

3,325

Motorists Injured

Prior: 3,3110.4%

23

Other Injured

Prior: 1464.3%

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-11-01 to 2023-11-30 · Mode classified from person records (driver/passenger → motorist; pedestrian; bicyclist → cyclist; in-line skater / unspecified → other)

When Crashes Happen

The temporal patterns of crashes were consistent year-over-year, with Wednesday being the peak day for collisions in both November 2022 (2,259 crashes) and November 2023 (2,398 crashes). The evening commute hour of 5 p.m. also remained the peak time for crashes in both periods. A notable shift occurred in the daily distribution of crashes during the week, with collisions on Tuesdays decreasing from 2,179 to 1,683 while those on Thursdays increased from 1,605 to 2,141.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-11-01 to 2023-11-30 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-11-01 to 2023-11-30 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)

Crash Severity Breakdown

The severity of crashes decreased from November 2022 to November 2023, primarily driven by a drop in fatal incidents. The number of fatal crashes fell from 33 to 18, causing the fatal crash rate per 100 crashes to decline from 0.27 to 0.15. The proportion of crashes resulting in any level of injury (Serious, Minor, or Possible) remained nearly unchanged, constituting 21.2% of all crashes in the prior period and 21.5% in the current period.

Severity is per crash event (most severe injury). 18 fatal crash events resulted in 19 persons killed.

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Fatal18fatal crashes0.1%
-45.5%prior 33
Serious Injury213serious injury crashes1.7%
-1.4%prior 216
Minor Injury1,546minor injury crashes12.6%
0.9%prior 1,532
Possible Injury891possible injury crashes7.2%
7.0%prior 833
No Injury9,005no injury crashes73.1%
2.6%prior 8,775

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-11-01 to 2023-11-30 · KABCO injury classification scale

Severity Distribution (Crash Events)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-11-01 to 2023-11-30 · Most severe injury per crash record

Top Contributing Factors

The top three contributing factors for crashes remained consistent between November 2022 and November 2023: 'No improper driving,' 'Inattention,' and 'Failed to yield right of way.' The count of crashes attributed to 'Failed to yield right of way' increased from 1,220 to 1,292, and collisions involving 'Followed too closely' rose from 1,088 to 1,165. Conversely, crashes where 'Driving too fast for conditions' was a factor saw a notable decrease in count, falling from 224 to 181.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

No improper driving3,461 (28.1%)4.6%prior 3,308
Inattention1,583 (12.9%)1.1%prior 1,566
Failed to yield right of way1,292 (10.5%)5.9%prior 1,220
Followed too closely1,165 (9.5%)7.1%prior 1,088
Failure to keep in proper lane or running off road526 (4.3%)1.0%prior 521
Other improper action367 (3%)7.6%prior 341
Operating vehicle in erratic, reckless, careless, negligent or aggressive manner357 (2.9%)-8.7%prior 391
Disregarded traffic signs, signals, road markings307 (2.5%)8.1%prior 284
Distracted235 (1.9%)8.8%prior 216
Driving too fast for conditions181 (1.5%)-19.2%prior 224

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-11-01 to 2023-11-30 · Officer-reported primary contributory cause per crash

Road & Environmental Conditions

Crash conditions were broadly similar year-over-year, with the majority of incidents in both periods occurring during daylight (53.5% of crashes in 2022 vs. 54.1% in 2023) and on dry roads (83.9% vs. 85.6%). There was a noticeable decrease in crashes occurring on wet road surfaces, which fell from 1,725 incidents in November 2022 to 1,420 in November 2023. This corresponds with a drop in crashes reported during rainy weather, from 818 to 564.

Weather

Clear8,766 (72.4%)
4.2%prior 8,412
Cloudy857 (7.1%)
14.1%prior 751
Clear/Clear781 (6.5%)
-14.0%prior 908
Rain564 (4.7%)
-31.1%prior 818
Cloudy/Rain195 (1.6%)
-26.7%prior 266
Clear/Cloudy192 (1.6%)
15.7%prior 166
Clear/Unknown127 (1.0%)
12.4%prior 113
Clear/Other108 (0.9%)
9.1%prior 99
Rain/Cloudy103 (0.9%)
3.0%prior 100
Snow72 (0.6%)
94.6%prior 37

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-11-01 to 2023-11-30 · Weather condition at time of crash

Lighting

Daylight6,662 (54.6%)
2.1%prior 6,522
Dark - lighted roadway3,503 (28.7%)
-0.2%prior 3,509
Dark - roadway not lighted1,141 (9.4%)
-1.6%prior 1,160
Dusk500 (4.1%)
3.1%prior 485
Dawn264 (2.2%)
4.3%prior 253
Dark - unknown roadway lighting114 (0.9%)
-10.2%prior 127
Other10 (0.1%)
-37.5%prior 16

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-11-01 to 2023-11-30 · Lighting condition field

Road Surface

Dry10,538 (86.9%)
3.1%prior 10,222
Wet1,420 (11.7%)
-17.7%prior 1,725
Snow95 (0.8%)
137.5%prior 40
Ice38 (0.3%)
153.3%prior 15
Sand, mud, dirt, oil, gravel14 (0.1%)
0.0%prior 14
Slush12 (0.1%)
33.3%prior 9
Water (standing, moving)6 (0.0%)
-57.1%prior 14
Other4 (0.0%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-11-01 to 2023-11-30 · Road surface condition field

Vehicles & Demographics

The demographics of vehicles and persons involved in crashes showed high stability between the two periods. The top five vehicle makes involved in collisions remained unchanged in their ranking: Toyota, Honda, Ford, Chevrolet, and Nissan. The age distribution of all persons involved also saw minimal shifts, with most age groups' representation remaining within one percentage point year-over-year. For instance, individuals aged 65 and older represented 10.5% of persons involved in the prior period and 10.8% in the current period.

Top Vehicle Makes (22,506 vehicles)

1
TOYOTA3,826 (17%)
3.9%prior 3,682
2
HONDA2,942 (13.1%)
1.0%prior 2,912
3
FORD2,329 (10.3%)
-1.1%prior 2,354
4
CHEVROLET1,583 (7%)
0.3%prior 1,579
5
NISSAN1,480 (6.6%)
6.4%prior 1,391
6
JEEP1,034 (4.6%)
4.8%prior 987
7
SUBARU901 (4%)
-1.1%prior 911
8
HYUNDAI865 (3.8%)
3.5%prior 836
9
KIA538 (2.4%)
7.2%prior 502
10
GMC514 (2.3%)
6.2%prior 484

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-11-01 to 2023-11-30 · Vehicle unit records

2,953 persons with unknown or unrecorded age excluded from age chart.

Sex Distribution (24,791 persons with recorded sex)

Male13,862 (55.9%)
2.2%prior 13,565
Female10,911 (44.0%)
-0.3%prior 10,948
X / Unspecified18 (0.1%)
50.0%prior 12

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-11-01 to 2023-11-30 · Person-level records linked to crash events

Speed Limit Zones

The distribution of crashes across speed zones saw some shifts, with an increase in crashes in 25 mph zones (from 2,105 to 2,351) and a decrease in 30 mph zones (from 3,160 to 3,069). Fatal crashes decreased across multiple speed limits, with the most significant drop occurring in 30 mph zones, where fatal crashes fell from 9 in November 2022 to 4 in November 2023. In 65 mph zones, fatal crashes decreased from 5 to 4.

Fatal crashes by zone: 20 mph: 1 of 317 (0.315%) · 25 mph: 2 of 2,351 (0.085%) · 30 mph: 4 of 3,069 (0.13%) · 35 mph: 3 of 1,780 (0.169%) · 40 mph: 1 of 943 (0.106%) · 45 mph: 1 of 497 (0.201%) · 55 mph: 1 of 624 (0.16%) · 65 mph: 4 of 899 (0.445%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-11-01 to 2023-11-30 · 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: 2023-11-01 through 2023-11-30
  • Report generated: June 21, 2026

Data Coverage

  • Reporting period: 2023-11-01 through 2023-11-30 (30 days)
  • Geographic scope: massachusetts, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 12,315
  • Total persons involved: 28,081
  • Total vehicles involved: 22,506

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). "massachusetts, MA Crash Intelligence Report: November 2023." Published June 21, 2026. Reporting period: 2023-11-01 to 2023-11-30. Data source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV), Arcgis_yearly Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/massachusetts/statewide/november-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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Massachusetts (Statewide) Crash Report — November 2023 | ThatCarHitMe.com