Yearly Traffic Safety Analysis

18 CRASHES IN
WENDELL, MA
2023

All metrics benchmarked against2022

In 2023, Wendell recorded 18 total traffic crashes, a 28.6% increase from the 14 crashes reported in 2022. While the total number of injuries remained unchanged at four, the most notable year-over-year change was the increase in crashes attributed to distracted driving, which rose from one crash involving inattention in the prior period to five in the current period.

18

28.6%was 14

Total Crash Events

0

Persons Killed

4

Persons Injured

0

Fatal Crash Events

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 · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records

Trend Summary

Year-over-year data indicates a rising trend in total collisions in Wendell. Total crashes increased by 28.6%, from 14 in 2022 to 18 in 2023. Despite this increase in crash volume, the number of resulting injuries held steady at four, and no fatalities were reported in either period.

Vulnerable Road User Casualties

0

Motorists Killed

Prior: 00.0%

4

Motorists Injured

Prior: 40.0%

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 temporal patterns of crashes in Wendell shifted between the two periods. In 2022, the highest number of crashes occurred on Sunday with five incidents, whereas in 2023, Wednesday and Friday were the peak days with five crashes each. The peak time for crashes also changed, moving from the 3 p.m. hour in 2022 (3 crashes) to the 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. hours in 2023, which each recorded three 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

There were no fatal crashes reported in either 2022 or 2023. While the total number of injuries remained constant at four, the severity of those injuries decreased year-over-year. In 2022, crashes resulted in one serious injury, two minor injuries, and one possible injury, whereas in 2023, all four reported injuries were classified as minor. The proportion of crashes with no injuries increased from 71.4% in 2022 to 77.8% in 2023.

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Minor Injury3minor injury crashes16.7%
50.0%prior 2
No Injury14no injury crashes77.8%
40.0%prior 10

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 leading contributing factors for crashes showed a notable shift between periods. In 2023, distracted driving was cited in five crashes, a significant increase from the single crash attributed to inattention in 2022. Crashes where 'no improper driving' was noted also increased in count from four to six. Conversely, factors such as 'operating vehicle in erratic, reckless, careless, negligent or aggressive manner,' which accounted for two crashes in 2022, were not listed as a top factor in 2023.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

No improper driving6 (33.3%)
Distracted5 (27.8%)
Swerving or avoiding due to wind, slippery surface, vehicle, object, vulnerable user in roadway2 (11.1%)
Driving too fast for conditions1 (5.6%)

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

Crashes in 2023 occurred more frequently under adverse conditions compared to the prior year. The proportion of collisions happening on non-dry road surfaces increased from 35.7% (5 crashes) in 2022 to 55.6% (10 crashes) in 2023. Similarly, crashes during adverse weather like rain or snow accounted for 50% of incidents in 2023, up from a 28.6% share in 2022. The share of crashes occurring in daylight decreased from 64.3% to 55.6% year-over-year.

Weather

Clear9 (50.0%)
-10.0%prior 10
Cloudy4 (22.2%)
Cloudy/Rain2 (11.1%)
Rain/Cloudy1 (5.6%)
Rain/Snow1 (5.6%)
Snow1 (5.6%)

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

Lighting

Daylight10 (55.6%)
11.1%prior 9
Dark - roadway not lighted7 (38.9%)
40.0%prior 5
Dusk1 (5.6%)

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

Road Surface

Dry8 (44.4%)
-11.1%prior 9
Wet4 (22.2%)
Sand, mud, dirt, oil, gravel2 (11.1%)
Snow2 (11.1%)
Ice1 (5.6%)
Slush1 (5.6%)

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

Vehicles & Demographics

Top Vehicle Makes (19 vehicles)

1
TOYOTA4 (21.1%)
-33.3%prior 6
2
SUBARU3 (15.8%)
3
HONDA3 (15.8%)
4
CHRYSLER2 (10.5%)
5
CHEVROLET2 (10.5%)
6
NISSAN2 (10.5%)
7
KIA1 (5.3%)
8
ACURA1 (5.3%)
9
RAM1 (5.3%)

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

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

Sex Distribution (21 persons with recorded sex)

Female11 (52.4%)
37.5%prior 8
Male10 (47.6%)
-9.1%prior 11

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 distribution of crashes across speed zones remained relatively consistent, with most incidents in both years occurring in 35 mph and 40 mph zones. In 2023, crashes in 40 mph zones increased from seven to eight, while those in 35 mph zones rose from three to five. The 2023 data also included single crashes in 20, 25, and 55 mph zones, which were not represented in the prior year's data, while crashes in the 45 mph zone were unique to 2022. There were no fatal crashes recorded in any speed zone during either period.

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: WENDELL, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 18
  • Total persons involved: 24
  • Total vehicles involved: 19

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). "WENDELL, 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/wendell/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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Wendell, MA Crash Report — 2023 | ThatCarHitMe.com