Monthly Traffic Safety Analysis

37 CRASHES IN
WESTWOOD, MA
MARCH 2026

All metrics benchmarked againstMarch 2025

Total crashes in WESTWOOD, MA increased by 12.12% year-over-year, rising from 33 in March 2025 to 37 in March 2026. A notable shift was the more than doubling of crashes in 55 MPH speed zones, increasing from 3 to 8. Despite the increase in total crashes, the total number of injuries remained stable at 12 in both periods.

37

12.1%was 33

Total Crash Events

0

Persons Killed

12

Persons Injured

2

100.0%was 1

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.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-03-01 to 2026-03-31 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records

Trend Summary

Overall, crashes in WESTWOOD, MA increased year-over-year, with total crashes rising from 33 in March 2025 to 37 in March 2026, a 12.12% increase. Total fatalities remained at 0 in both periods, and total injuries held steady at 12. This indicates an increase in crash frequency without a corresponding rise in injury severity or fatalities.

2

Hit-and-Run Crashes — March 2026

100.0% vs prior (1)

Hit-and-run crashes increased from 1 in March 2025 to 2 in March 2026, representing a 100% increase year-over-year. The hit-and-run rate also rose from 3% of total crashes in the prior period to 5.4% in the current period, indicating an upward trend.

Vulnerable Road User Casualties

0

Motorists Killed

Prior: 00.0%

12

Motorists Injured

Prior: 119.1%

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-03-01 to 2026-03-31 · Mode classified from person records (driver/passenger → motorist; pedestrian; bicyclist → cyclist; in-line skater / unspecified → other)

When Crashes Happen

The peak day for crashes shifted from Monday in March 2025, which had 10 crashes, to Tuesday in March 2026, which recorded 11 crashes. The peak hour remained 4 PM in both periods, but the number of crashes at this hour increased significantly from 5 in March 2025 to 9 in March 2026. Crashes on Monday decreased from 10 to 3 year-over-year.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-03-01 to 2026-03-31 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-03-01 to 2026-03-31 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)

Crash Severity Breakdown

Fatalities remained at 0 in both March 2025 and March 2026, and the total number of injured persons stayed constant at 12. The proportion of crashes resulting in 'No Injury' increased from 69.7% in March 2025 to 75.7% in March 2026. Conversely, crashes categorized as 'Minor Injury' decreased in share from 18.2% to 10.8% year-over-year.

Outcome by Severity (Crash Events)

Minor Injury4minor injury crashes10.8%
-33.3%prior 6
Possible Injury5possible injury crashes13.5%
25.0%prior 4
No Injury28no injury crashes75.7%
21.7%prior 23

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-03-01 to 2026-03-31 · KABCO injury classification scale

Severity Distribution (Crash Events)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-03-01 to 2026-03-31 · Most severe injury per crash record

Top Contributing Factors

The top contributing factor, 'Followed too closely,' saw a decrease of 1 crash, from 10 in March 2025 to 9 in March 2026, and its share decreased from 30.3% to 24.3%. Conversely, 'Inattention' crashes doubled in count from 3 to 6, a 100% increase. 'Failed to yield right of way' crashes decreased by 3 crashes, from 9 to 6, representing a 33.3% reduction.

Officer-Reported Primary Contributing Cause

Followed too closely9 (24.3%)-10.0%prior 10
Failed to yield right of way6 (16.2%)-33.3%prior 9
Inattention6 (16.2%)
Failure to keep in proper lane or running off road4 (10.8%)
Distracted2 (5.4%)
Disregarded traffic signs, signals, road markings2 (5.4%)
Driving too fast for conditions1 (2.7%)
Made an improper turn1 (2.7%)
No improper driving1 (2.7%)
Wrong side or wrong way1 (2.7%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-03-01 to 2026-03-31 · Officer-reported primary contributory cause per crash

Road & Environmental Conditions

Crashes occurring in 'Clear/Clear' weather conditions decreased from 20 to 17, while those in 'Clear' conditions increased from 6 to 12. There was an increase in crashes during 'Rain/Rain' conditions, which were not present in the prior period, and a decrease in crashes during 'Fog, smog, smoke' conditions from 2 to 0. Crashes on 'Wet' road surfaces increased by 2, from 4 to 6, representing a 50% increase.

Weather

Clear/Clear17 (45.9%)
-15.0%prior 20
Clear12 (32.4%)
100.0%prior 6
Rain/Rain3 (8.1%)
Cloudy2 (5.4%)
Cloudy/Rain1 (2.7%)
Rain1 (2.7%)
Sleet, hail (freezing rain or drizzle)1 (2.7%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-03-01 to 2026-03-31 · Weather condition at time of crash

Lighting

Daylight30 (81.1%)
20.0%prior 25
Dark - lighted roadway3 (8.1%)
-40.0%prior 5
Dark - roadway not lighted3 (8.1%)
Dusk1 (2.7%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-03-01 to 2026-03-31 · Lighting condition field

Road Surface

Dry30 (81.1%)
7.1%prior 28
Wet6 (16.2%)
Ice1 (2.7%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-03-01 to 2026-03-31 · Road surface condition field

Vehicles & Demographics

The total number of vehicles involved in crashes increased from 67 in March 2025 to 70 in March 2026. Toyota remained the most frequently involved make, with its count rising from 12 to 17 vehicles. There was a notable increase in persons aged '21-25' involved in crashes, rising from 7 to 14, while the '35-44' age group saw a decrease from 16 to 10 persons involved.

Top Vehicle Makes (70 vehicles)

1
TOYOTA17 (24.3%)
41.7%prior 12
2
FORD7 (10%)
40.0%prior 5
3
HONDA6 (8.6%)
-25.0%prior 8
4
NISSAN5 (7.1%)
5
BMW4 (5.7%)
6
LEXUS3 (4.3%)
7
INFI3 (4.3%)
8
CHEVROLET3 (4.3%)
9
JEEP3 (4.3%)
10
ACURA2 (2.9%)

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-03-01 to 2026-03-31 · Vehicle unit records

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

Sex Distribution (74 persons with recorded sex)

Male42 (56.8%)
-2.3%prior 43
Female32 (43.2%)
-25.6%prior 43

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-03-01 to 2026-03-31 · Person-level records linked to crash events

Speed Limit Zones

Crashes in 30 MPH speed zones decreased significantly from 21 in March 2025 to 11 in March 2026, a 47.6% reduction. In contrast, crashes in 55 MPH zones more than doubled, increasing from 3 to 8, a 166.7% increase. There were no fatal crashes reported in any speed zone during either period.

Source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV) · Arcgis_yearly Open Data · 2026-03-01 to 2026-03-31 · 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: 2026-03-01 through 2026-03-31
  • Report generated: June 21, 2026

Data Coverage

  • Reporting period: 2026-03-01 through 2026-03-31 (31 days)
  • Geographic scope: WESTWOOD, MA
  • Total crash records analyzed: 37
  • Total persons involved: 77
  • Total vehicles involved: 70

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). "WESTWOOD, MA Crash Intelligence Report: March 2026." Published June 21, 2026. Reporting period: 2026-03-01 to 2026-03-31. Data source: Massachusetts Crash Data (MassDOT CDV), Arcgis_yearly Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/massachusetts/westwood/march-2026-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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Westwood, MA Crash Report — March 2026 | ThatCarHitMe.com