Statewide Fatal Crashes In MA, May 2021

Each month in 2021, we plan to post about the fatal crashes in Massachusetts from the previous month, and share any trends that we see. Last month, we took a look at the 6 fatal crashes listed in the MassDOT Crash Portal in April. In this post, we’ll look at crashes in MA in May 2021. The information in the chart below is compiled from news reports, and was checked against the MassDOT Crash Portal Dashboard “Fatal Information by Year.” The Google Street View images included below use the address listed in the crash portal.

• Of the 31 fatal crashes in Massachusetts in May in the MassDOT Crash portal, 8 were identified as people walking.
• The crash portal does not include names. The names of 4 of the people walking who died have not been made public yet.
• The average age of pedestrians hit & killed in May was 50.75.
• At least 1 of the crashes were hit & runs (as referenced in news articles).
• The name of the person driving was not identified in any of the crashes in news articles that we found.

53 year old Kevin Perkins was struck and killed by a driver on Collins Street (Rt 286) in Salisbury. The Daily News of Newburyport reported that Kevin worked for a landscape company and was struck by his co-worker driving a dump truck while trying to park a trailer. According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this street is under local jurisdiction. The speed limit is 30 mph, and there are no sidewalks.

60 year old Aida Brito was struck and killed by a driver as she crossed Broadway (Route 28) in Methuen. Police spokesperson Lt. Randy Haggar told the Eagle Tribune that there was no crosswalk where Brito was walking and that speed did not appear to have been a factor.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this street is under local jurisdiction and the speed limit is 20mph. Streetview on Google Maps shows that it is approximately 1,376 feet (over a quarter of a mile) between the crosswalks at Oakland Ave/Broadway and Center St/Broadway.

An unidentified 33 year old man was hit and killed in Springfield on Boland Way. The driver fled the scene. Western Mass News reports that the person driving was found and that the person killed was a worker on a nearby construction site.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this street is under local jurisdiction and the speed limit is 25mph. There are two travel lanes in each direction and sidewalks on both sides of the street.

An unidentified 38 year old woman was hit and killed on Rt 1 North in Saugus near the intersection of Route 99; NBC 10 Boston reports that the 45 year old driver of an SUV remained at the scene, and that the two right lanes were closed for about two hours while the scene was cleared and the investigation began.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this road is a divided highway and under MassDOT jurisdiction. The speed limit is 50mph. There is a sidewalk along the side of the road.

Billy Clark, a 63 year old Watertown man, was hit and killed while in a crosswalk by the driver of a tractor trailer who was turning left off Main Street onto Bacon Street in Waltham. WCVB reported that Billy was well known and liked by residents.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, both Main and Bacon are under local jurisdiction. Main Street has a speed limit of 35mph and Bacon has a speed limit of 30mph.

62 year old Robert Jansen was hit and killed on Newport Avenue by a 21 year old driver of a Jeep. The Boston Globe reports that “an initial observation of the crash determined that there was approximately 278 feet of visible skid marks leading up to the motor vehicle and victim.”

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Newport Avenue is under local jurisdiction. The speed limit is 35mph. There are two travel lanes in each direction, a sidewalk on one side of the street, and a crosswalk at the intersection which leads to a pedestrian tunnel so that people can walk underneath the MBTA tracks.

The Worcester Telegram & Gazette reports that 28 year old Kaylie Piekarczyk was riding her motorcycle in Sutton when she lost control, and was then hit by the driver of an oncoming SUV.

It is likely that FARS determined that this is categorized as a pedestrian crash since the person was no longer on their motorcycle when struck. [Update, 3/23/2022: this was re-categorized as a motorcycle crash.]

An unidentified 69 year old man was hit and killed at the corner of Bradford and Bangs Street in Provincetown according to CapeCod.com.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, both streets are under local jurisdiction, and have speed limits of 20-25mph. Bradford Street is 20 feet wide, with one lane in each direction; Bangs Street is 14 feet wide and operates as a two way yield street. While there are no sidewalks, there is a crosswalk at Bangs Street.

Updates

If you have an update about a community member who was killed in one of these crashes, please contact Brendan so we can update our . WalkBoston has maintained a list each year since 2016, pulling the information from news reports, social media, and from people like you that share the information with us.

Yearly trackers:  |||||

Reminder about the data from the MassDOT portal

DISCLAIMER:  The compilation of data is based on preliminary data we receive from a variety of local sources.  Some of the data may differ slightly from information provided by NHTSA as this dashboard does not use imputation methods.  Information is subject to change when/if updated information becomes available. Data updated daily as reported by police departments.