Monthly Traffic Safety Analysis

16 CRASHES IN
TEMPLETON, MA
MAY 2024

All metrics benchmarked againstMay 2023

Total crashes in TEMPLETON increased by 45.5%, from 11 in May 2023 to 16 in May 2024. This period also saw a significant and concerning shift with the occurrence of 1 fatality in May 2024, compared to 0 fatalities in May 2023. Additionally, DUI-related crashes rose by 200%, from 1 to 3, and speeding-related crashes also increased by 200%, from 1 to 3.

16

45.5%was 11

Total Crash Events

1

Persons Killed

9

125.0%was 4

Persons Injured

0

-100.0%was 1

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.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-05-01 to 2024-05-31 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records

Trend Summary

Overall, crash data for TEMPLETON indicates a rising trend year-over-year. Total crashes increased by 45.5%, from 11 crashes in May 2023 to 16 crashes in May 2024. Concurrently, total fatalities increased from 0 to 1, and total injuries more than doubled, rising from 4 to 9.

Vulnerable Road User Casualties

1

Motorists Killed

Prior: 0%

9

Motorists Injured

Prior: 4125.0%

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-05-01 to 2024-05-31 · Mode classified from person records (driver/passenger → motorist; pedestrian; bicyclist → cyclist; in-line skater / unspecified → other)

When Crashes Happen

The temporal distribution of crashes shifted year-over-year. The peak day for crashes moved from Wednesday with 3 crashes in May 2023 to Saturday with 5 crashes in May 2024. Similarly, the peak crash hour shifted from 5 PM with 2 crashes in May 2023 to 11 PM, also with 2 crashes, in May 2024.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-05-01 to 2024-05-31 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-05-01 to 2024-05-31 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)

Crash Severity Breakdown

The severity of crashes saw a notable change, with 1 fatal crash occurring in May 2024 compared to 0 in May 2023, resulting in a 6.25% fatal crash rate. Total injuries increased from 4 in May 2023 to 9 in May 2024. While the number of serious injury crashes remained at 1 in both periods, possible injury crashes doubled from 1 to 2.

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Fatal1fatal crashes6.3%
Serious Injury1serious injury crashes6.3%
0.0%prior 1
Minor Injury2minor injury crashes12.5%
0.0%prior 2
Possible Injury2possible injury crashes12.5%
100.0%prior 1
No Injury10no injury crashes62.5%
66.7%prior 6

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-05-01 to 2024-05-31 · KABCO injury classification scale

Severity Distribution (Crash Events)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-05-01 to 2024-05-31 · Most severe injury per crash record

Top Contributing Factors

Contributing factors showed shifts in prevalence, with "Operating vehicle in erratic, reckless, careless, negligent or aggressive manner" emerging as the leading factor in May 2024 with 5 crashes. Crashes attributed to "Driving too fast for conditions" increased from 1 in May 2023 to 3 in May 2024, a 200% increase in count. "No improper driving" also saw an increase, from 2 crashes to 3 crashes year-over-year.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

Operating vehicle in erratic, reckless, careless, negligent or aggressive manner5 (31.3%)
No improper driving3 (18.8%)
Driving too fast for conditions3 (18.8%)
Followed too closely1 (6.3%)
Failed to yield right of way1 (6.3%)
Distracted1 (6.3%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-05-01 to 2024-05-31 · Officer-reported primary contributory cause per crash

Road & Environmental Conditions

Crashes in clear weather conditions increased from 5 in May 2023 to 9 in May 2024, while crashes in rainy conditions increased from 1 to 2. Crashes occurring in daylight increased from 8 to 10. Crashes in dark conditions on unlighted roadways increased from 3 to 5, and 1 crash occurred in dark but lighted conditions in May 2024, a category not present in May 2023.

Weather

Clear9 (60.0%)
80.0%prior 5
Cloudy3 (20.0%)
Rain2 (13.3%)
Rain/Cloudy1 (6.7%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-05-01 to 2024-05-31 · Weather condition at time of crash

Lighting

Daylight10 (62.5%)
25.0%prior 8
Dark - roadway not lighted5 (31.3%)
Dark - lighted roadway1 (6.3%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-05-01 to 2024-05-31 · Lighting condition field

Road Surface

Dry13 (81.3%)
44.4%prior 9
Wet3 (18.8%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-05-01 to 2024-05-31 · Road surface condition field

Vehicles & Demographics

Top Vehicle Makes (25 vehicles)

1
HONDA4 (16%)
2
CHEVROLET3 (12%)
-50.0%prior 6
3
JEEP2 (8%)
4
FORD2 (8%)
-60.0%prior 5
5
KIA2 (8%)
6
NISSAN2 (8%)
7
SUBARU2 (8%)
8
CHRYSLER1 (4%)
9
TOYOTA1 (4%)
10
MERCEDES-BENZ1 (4%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-05-01 to 2024-05-31 · Vehicle unit records

Sex Distribution (31 persons with recorded sex)

Female17 (54.8%)
142.9%prior 7
Male14 (45.2%)
100.0%prior 7

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-05-01 to 2024-05-31 · Person-level records linked to crash events

Speed Limit Zones

Crashes in the 55 mph speed zone significantly increased from 3 in May 2023 to 7 in May 2024. The 45 mph zone also saw an increase from 1 to 2 crashes, with this zone recording 1 fatal crash in May 2024 compared to 0 in the prior period. Crashes in the 30 mph zone increased from 3 to 5, while the 40 mph zone experienced a decrease from 2 to 1 crash.

Fatal crashes by zone: 45 mph: 1 of 2 (50%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2024-05-01 to 2024-05-31 · 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: 2024-05-01 through 2024-05-31
  • Report generated: June 21, 2026

Data Coverage

  • Reporting period: 2024-05-01 through 2024-05-31 (31 days)
  • Geographic scope: TEMPLETON, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 16
  • Total persons involved: 32
  • Total vehicles involved: 25

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). "TEMPLETON, MA Crash Intelligence Report: May 2024." Published June 21, 2026. Reporting period: 2024-05-01 to 2024-05-31. Data source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV), Arcgis_yearly Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/massachusetts/templeton/may-2024-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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Templeton, MA Crash Report — May 2024 | ThatCarHitMe.com