Fatal Pedestrian Crashes in MA (2021) Report News Coverage

Report Overview

Every life lost on Massachusetts’ roads is tragic. At WalkBoston, we advocate for the most vulnerable road users – people walking. In 2021, at least 75 pedestrians lost their lives in traffic crashes in Massachusetts, accounting for 18 percent of all lives lost in traffic crashes.

Findings:

• Of the 351 cities and towns in Massachusetts, 47 had a fatal pedestrian crash in 2021. Over half (40 of 75) of the deaths happened in 12 municipalities.
• Older adults were hit and killed at a higher rate than those in other age groups: 36% of fatal crash victims were over the age of 65. In Massachusetts, only 17% of the population is over 65.  ¹  
• Over half of Massachusetts’ fatal pedestrian crashes (50.67%) occurred on streets with speed limits of 30 to 35 MPH. These are neighborhood streets and main streets where more people are walking.
• Roughly 65% of the people killed while walking were on roads owned by a city or town, while approximately 35% were walking on roads owned by a state agency (MassDOT or MassDCR).