Monthly Traffic Safety Analysis

147 CRASHES IN
TAUNTON, MA
FEBRUARY 2023

All metrics benchmarked againstFebruary 2022

In February 2023, Taunton recorded 147 total crashes, a 26.5% decrease compared to the 200 crashes reported in February 2022. This period saw a notable 71.4% increase in hit-and-run crashes, rising from 7 to 12 incidents.

147

-26.5%was 200

Total Crash Events

0

Persons Killed

39

-17.0%was 47

Persons Injured

12

71.4%was 7

Hit-and-Run Crashes

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. 8 crashes with unreported severity are not shown in the severity breakdown.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-02-01 to 2023-02-28 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records

Trend Summary

Overall, crash activity in Taunton decreased year-over-year. Total crashes fell by 26.5%, from 200 incidents in February 2022 to 147 in February 2023. Concurrently, total injuries decreased from 47 to 39.

12

Hit-and-Run Crashes — February 2023

71.4% vs prior (7)

The number of hit-and-run crashes increased from 7 in February 2022 to 12 in February 2023, marking a 71.4% increase in incidents. Consequently, the hit-and-run rate rose from 3.5% of all crashes in the prior period to 8.2% in the current period, indicating an upward trend.

Vulnerable Road User Casualties

0

Motorists Killed

Prior: 00.0%

39

Motorists Injured

Prior: 46-15.2%

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-02-01 to 2023-02-28 · Mode classified from person records (driver/passenger → motorist; pedestrian; bicyclist → cyclist; in-line skater / unspecified → other)

When Crashes Happen

The peak crash day remained Wednesday in both periods, though the count decreased from 43 to 25 crashes. The peak crash hour shifted from 5p (19 crashes) in February 2022 to 10a (15 crashes) in February 2023. Overall, crash counts were lower across most days of the week and hours in the current period compared to the prior period.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-02-01 to 2023-02-28 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-02-01 to 2023-02-28 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)

Crash Severity Breakdown

Fatalities remained at zero in both February 2022 and February 2023. While total injuries decreased from 47 to 39, the number of serious injuries (severity A) increased from 1 in the prior period to 3 in the current period. The proportion of crashes resulting in serious injury rose from 0.5% to 2.0% year-over-year.

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Serious Injury3serious injury crashes2%
200.0%prior 1
Minor Injury16minor injury crashes10.9%
-27.3%prior 22
Possible Injury9possible injury crashes6.1%
-10.0%prior 10
No Injury111no injury crashes75.5%
-30.2%prior 159

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-02-01 to 2023-02-28 · KABCO injury classification scale

Severity Distribution (Crash Events)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-02-01 to 2023-02-28 · Most severe injury per crash record

Top Contributing Factors

The leading contributing factor, 'No improper driving', decreased from 53 incidents in February 2022 to 28 in February 2023, a 47.2% reduction in count. 'Inattention' incidents also decreased from 36 to 27, a 25% reduction in count. While 'Failed to yield right of way' decreased by 2 crashes to 22, 'Exceeded authorized speed limit' incidents increased from 1 to 2, a 100% increase in count.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

No improper driving28 (19%)-47.2%prior 53
Inattention27 (18.4%)-25.0%prior 36
Failed to yield right of way22 (15%)-8.3%prior 24
Followed too closely13 (8.8%)-18.8%prior 16
Other improper action8 (5.4%)
Failure to keep in proper lane or running off road6 (4.1%)-50.0%prior 12
Disregarded traffic signs, signals, road markings5 (3.4%)
Distracted5 (3.4%)
Visibility obstructed4 (2.7%)
Made an improper turn3 (2%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-02-01 to 2023-02-28 · Officer-reported primary contributory cause per crash

Road & Environmental Conditions

Crashes on snow-covered roads significantly decreased from 27 in February 2022 to 2 in February 2023, and crashes on icy roads also fell from 19 to 10. In contrast, crashes during rainy conditions increased from 4 to 12. The number of crashes occurring in daylight decreased from 119 to 90 year-over-year.

Weather

Clear55 (38.2%)
-57.7%prior 130
Clear/Clear53 (36.8%)
Cloudy13 (9.0%)
-23.5%prior 17
Rain7 (4.9%)
Cloudy/Rain3 (2.1%)
Clear/Cloudy3 (2.1%)
Cloudy/Clear2 (1.4%)
Rain/Rain2 (1.4%)
Snow/Snow2 (1.4%)
Cloudy/Cloudy1 (0.7%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-02-01 to 2023-02-28 · Weather condition at time of crash

Lighting

Daylight90 (61.6%)
-24.4%prior 119
Dark - lighted roadway38 (26.0%)
-28.3%prior 53
Dawn7 (4.8%)
16.7%prior 6
Dark - roadway not lighted6 (4.1%)
-25.0%prior 8
Dusk5 (3.4%)
-50.0%prior 10

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-02-01 to 2023-02-28 · Lighting condition field

Road Surface

Dry114 (78.1%)
-4.2%prior 119
Wet20 (13.7%)
-31.0%prior 29
Ice10 (6.8%)
-47.4%prior 19
Snow2 (1.4%)
-92.6%prior 27

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-02-01 to 2023-02-28 · Road surface condition field

Vehicles & Demographics

The total number of vehicles involved in crashes decreased from 352 in February 2022 to 266 in February 2023. Toyota vehicles increased their count from 35 to 41, becoming the most frequently involved make, while Chevrolet saw the largest decrease from 44 to 20. The 26-34 age group saw a significant decrease in persons involved from 90 to 49, whereas the 65+ age group increased from 29 to 40.

Top Vehicle Makes (266 vehicles)

1
TOYOTA41 (15.4%)
17.1%prior 35
2
FORD33 (12.4%)
-19.5%prior 41
3
HONDA27 (10.2%)
-35.7%prior 42
4
NISSAN20 (7.5%)
-45.9%prior 37
5
CHEVROLET20 (7.5%)
-54.5%prior 44
6
HYUNDAI18 (6.8%)
20.0%prior 15
7
GMC10 (3.8%)
-41.2%prior 17
8
SUBARU9 (3.4%)
-10.0%prior 10
9
JEEP9 (3.4%)
-40.0%prior 15
10
INFI7 (2.6%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-02-01 to 2023-02-28 · Vehicle unit records

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

Sex Distribution (290 persons with recorded sex)

Male179 (61.7%)
-17.1%prior 216
Female111 (38.3%)
-30.2%prior 159

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-02-01 to 2023-02-28 · Person-level records linked to crash events

Speed Limit Zones

Crashes in the 65 mph speed zone decreased significantly from 24 incidents in February 2022 to 8 in February 2023. The 30 mph zone, which consistently recorded the highest crash counts, also saw a reduction from 76 to 67 crashes. No fatal crashes were reported in any speed zone during either the current or prior period.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2023-02-01 to 2023-02-28 · 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: 2023-02-01 through 2023-02-28
  • Report generated: June 21, 2026

Data Coverage

  • Reporting period: 2023-02-01 through 2023-02-28 (28 days)
  • Geographic scope: TAUNTON, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 147
  • Total persons involved: 320
  • Total vehicles involved: 266

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). "TAUNTON, MA Crash Intelligence Report: February 2023." Published June 21, 2026. Reporting period: 2023-02-01 to 2023-02-28. Data source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV), Arcgis_yearly Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/massachusetts/taunton/february-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

ThatCarHitMe.com · An Injuria.ai Company

Taunton, MA Crash Report — February 2023 | ThatCarHitMe.com