Monthly Traffic Safety Analysis

24 CRASHES IN
WELLESLEY, MA
AUGUST 2022

All metrics benchmarked againstAugust 2021

In August 2022, Wellesley experienced a significant decrease in total crashes, with 24 incidents compared to 46 in August 2021, representing a 47.8% reduction. This notable decline was accompanied by a decrease in fatalities from 1 to 0 and injuries from 13 to 3, marking the most significant year-over-year shift.

24

▼ -47.8%was 46

Total Crash Events

0

▼ -100.0%was 1

Persons Killed

3

▼ -76.9%was 13

Persons Injured

2

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. 1 crash with unreported severity is not shown in the severity breakdown.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records

Trend Summary

The overall trend indicates a substantial decrease in crash activity year-over-year, with total crashes falling by 47.8% from 46 in August 2021 to 24 in August 2022. Fatalities dropped from 1 to 0, and the number of injured persons decreased by 76.9%, from 13 to 3.

2

Hit-and-Run Crashes — August 2022

▼ 0.0% vs prior (2)

The number of hit-and-run crashes remained constant at 2 in both August 2021 and August 2022. However, due to the overall decrease in total crashes, the hit-and-run rate increased from 4.3% in August 2021 to 8.3% in August 2022.

Vulnerable Road User Casualties

0

Cyclists Killed

Prior: 0→0.0%

0

Motorists Killed

Prior: 1↓-100.0%

1

Cyclists Injured

Prior: 1→0.0%

2

Motorists Injured

Prior: 11↓-81.8%

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Mode classified from person records (driver/passenger → motorist; pedestrian; bicyclist → cyclist; in-line skater / unspecified → other)

When Crashes Happen

The temporal patterns of crashes shifted year-over-year. In August 2021, the peak day for crashes was Friday with 8 incidents, and the peak hour was 12 p.m. with 5 crashes. In contrast, August 2022 saw Tuesday as the peak day with 5 crashes, and 5 p.m. as the peak hour with 4 crashes.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)

Crash Severity Breakdown

Crash severity distributions show a positive change year-over-year, with fatal crashes decreasing from 1 in August 2021 to 0 in August 2022. The number of minor injuries significantly decreased from 6 to 2, while serious injuries remained constant at 1 crash in both periods. The proportion of no-injury crashes increased from 71.7% to 83.3% of total crashes.

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Serious Injury1serious injury crashes4.2%
→0.0%prior 1
Minor Injury2minor injury crashes8.3%
↓-66.7%prior 6
No Injury20no injury crashes83.3%
↓-39.4%prior 33

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · KABCO injury classification scale

Severity Distribution (Crash Events)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Most severe injury per crash record

Top Contributing Factors

Several key contributing factors saw changes in crash counts year-over-year. Crashes attributed to 'No improper driving' decreased from 13 to 11, and 'Inattention' related crashes fell from 7 to 4. 'Followed too closely' crashes decreased from 3 to 1, while 'Failed to yield right of way' crashes remained at 1 in both periods. Factors like 'Operating vehicle in erratic, reckless, careless, negligent or aggressive manner' (4 crashes in prior year) were not present in the current data.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

No improper driving11 (45.8%)↓-15.4%prior 13
Inattention4 (16.7%)↓-42.9%prior 7
Followed too closely1 (4.2%)
Failed to yield right of way1 (4.2%)
Exceeded authorized speed limit1 (4.2%)
Other improper action1 (4.2%)
Physical impairment1 (4.2%)
Swerving or avoiding due to wind, slippery surface, vehicle, object, vulnerable user in roadway1 (4.2%)
Distracted1 (4.2%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Officer-reported primary contributory cause per crash

Road & Environmental Conditions

Regarding crash conditions, crashes occurring in 'Clear' weather decreased from 31 in August 2021 to 23 in August 2022, and 'Cloudy' weather crashes decreased from 8 to 1. For lighting conditions, 'Daylight' crashes decreased from 34 to 21, while 'Dusk' crashes slightly increased from 1 to 2. The 'roadSurface' data for the current period is not available for comparison.

Weather

Clear23 (95.8%)
↓-25.8%prior 31
Cloudy1 (4.2%)
↓-87.5%prior 8

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Weather condition at time of crash

Lighting

Daylight21 (87.5%)
↓-38.2%prior 34
Dusk2 (8.3%)
Dark - roadway not lighted1 (4.2%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Lighting condition field

Vehicles & Demographics

Top Vehicle Makes (44 vehicles)

1
TOYOTA7 (15.9%)
↓-46.2%prior 13
2
MERCEDES-BENZ4 (9.1%)
3
ACURA4 (9.1%)
4
HONDA4 (9.1%)
↓-66.7%prior 12
5
CHEVROLET4 (9.1%)
6
SUBARU2 (4.5%)
7
NISSAN2 (4.5%)
8
BMW2 (4.5%)
9
FORD2 (4.5%)
↓-80.0%prior 10
10
MAZDA2 (4.5%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Vehicle unit records

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

Sex Distribution (40 persons with recorded sex)

Female25 (62.5%)
↓-37.5%prior 40
Male15 (37.5%)
↓-68.1%prior 47

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · Person-level records linked to crash events

Speed Limit Zones

Crashes in 30 mph zones decreased from 21 in August 2021 to 9 in August 2022, and those in 50 mph zones decreased from 15 to 6. Crashes in 55 mph zones remained at 4 in both periods, though the prior period recorded 1 fatal crash in this zone, while the current period had none. The current period also reported crashes in 20 mph, 25 mph, and 35 mph zones, which were not present in the prior year's data.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31 · 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: 2022-08-01 through 2022-08-31
  • Report generated: June 21, 2026

Data Coverage

  • Reporting period: 2022-08-01 through 2022-08-31 (31 days)
  • Geographic scope: WELLESLEY, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 24
  • Total persons involved: 49
  • Total vehicles involved: 44

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). "WELLESLEY, MA Crash Intelligence Report: August 2022." Published June 21, 2026. Reporting period: 2022-08-01 to 2022-08-31. Data source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV), Arcgis_yearly Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/massachusetts/wellesley/august-2022-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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Wellesley, MA Crash Report — August 2022 | ThatCarHitMe.com