Canton Archives - WalkMassachusetts

Statewide Fatal Crashes In MA, January 2022

Each month, we post about the fatal crashes in Massachusetts from the previous month, and share any trends that we see. For the full list of monthly posts, head here. We will be releasing a year in review for 2021 in the coming weeks to highlight common issues.

Last month, we took a look at the four fatal crashes listed in the MassDOT Crash Portal in December. In this post, we’ll look at crashes in MA in January 2022. The information in the chart below is compiled from news reports, and was checked against the MassDOT Crash Portal Dashboard “Fatal Crash Information.” The Google Street View images included below use the address listed in the crash portal.

Of the 27 fatal crashes in Massachusetts in January in the MassDOT Crash portal, nine were identified as people walking.
The average age of pedestrians hit & killed in January was 52.2.

Date	1/1/2022, 7:54 PM
Location	US-3 NORTH, south of EXIT 78
Town	Billerica
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	43
Sex	M

Joseph Francois, age 43, was struck and killed by a 2016 Ford F-150 that was being driven by a 25-year-old Billerica man. WCVB reports that Joseph had been a passenger in a 2016 Chevrolet Equinox that was pulled over in the breakdown lane.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this road is under MassDOT jurisdiction. It is a limited access highway, with a median and 3 travel lanes in each direction. The speed limit is 55mph.

Date	1/4/2022, 6:00 PM
Location	577 Belleville Ave.
Town	New Bedford
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	54
Sex	M

A 54 year old man was hit and killed in New Bedford. 1420 WBSM (New Bedford’s News-Talk Station) shared that according to a police department spokesperson, the man was apparently crossing the street near Belleville Avenue and Nash Road at around 6 p.m. when he was struck by a car.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, both Belleville Avenue and Nash Road are under local jurisdiction. Belleville Avenue is two-way, with 1 travel lanes in each direction. Nash Road is two-way,with 1 travel lanes in each direction. There is a sidewalk on both sides of each street. There is a crosswalk across Nash Street. The speed limit is not indicated for either street in the Road Inventory.

Date	1/6/2022, 7:13 PM
Location	450 Highland Ave.
Town	Salem
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	41
Sex	F

A 41 year old woman was hit and killed near Walmart in Salem on Rt 107 / Highland Avenue. WCVB shared that “a preliminary investigation found the woman was crossing the street in front of the Walmart when she was hit by a southbound 2021 Honda Accord in the left lane…several busy stores are located in the area, including a Walmart and a Dunkin’. There is no crosswalk at that intersection.”

The MassDOT Crash Impact Portal’s mapping tool displays the crash location as along the side of the roadway near the entrance to the Walmart Plaza.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this road is under MassDOT jurisdiction. There is a median and 2 travel lanes in each direction. There is an additional left turning lane and right turning lane into the Walmart lot at the signalized intersection. The speed limit is 35mph.

Date	1/10/2022, 5:15 PM
Location	179 Vernon St.
Town	Worcester
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	72
Sex	M

A 72 year old man was hit and killed at the corner of Vernon Street and Upsala Street in Worcester, the Telegram & Gazette / Yahoo Finance reported. The victim was unconscious at the scene and taken by ambulance to the hospital, where he later died.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, both Vernon and Upsala are under local jurisdiction. Each street is two-way, with 1 travel lane in each direction. There is a sidewalk on both sides of each street. There is a crosswalk across each leg of the intersection. There is a bus stop sign visible on Street View. The speed limit is not indicated for either street in the Road Inventory.

Date	1/17/2022, 9:01 PM
Location	California Ave. + Worcester Rd.
Town	Framingham
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	48
Sex	M

A 48 year old man was hit and killed near the intersection of California Avenue and Worcester Road (Route 9) in Framingham. CBS Boston shared that “the driver of the 1986 Mazda RX7 was headed west in the left lane when it’s alleged that he hit the pedestrian and then crashed into the center median.”

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Worcester Road/Rt 9 is under MassDOT jurisdiction. It is a partial access control roadway, with a median and 3 travel lanes in each direction. There are 2 additional left turning lanes on Rt9 eastbound and a right turning lane on Rt9 westbound to access California Street at the signalized intersection. The speed limit is 45mph.

There is a crosswalk to cross California Street, but there are no crosswalks at this signalized intersection to cross Worcester Rd/Route 9.

Date	1/19/2022, 6:29 PM
Location	1188 Main St.
Town	Wakefield
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	69
Sex	F

Wakefield Patch reported that a woman in her 60s was struck and killed by the driver of a Nissan Frontier truck on Main Street near Cibo Cafe & Bistro and the post office.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this road is under local jurisdiction. It is a two-way street, with 1 travel lane in each direction and parking on each side. The speed limit is 30mph.

Residents have formed a Safe Streets Working Group, and meet the 4th Wednesday of Each Month at 7pm; the group had been speaking with DPW members the evening of the fatal crash.

Date	1/26/2022, 4:01 PM
Location	Lindelof Ave. (SR-139) + SR-24 NORTH onramp
Town	Stoughton
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	21
Sex	F

A person was hit and killed on Lindelof Avenue (State Route 139) in Stoughton near the Rt 24 interchange.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this section of Lindelof Avenue near the interchange is under MassDOT jurisdiction. It has a median and 2 travel lanes in each direction along with on/off ramps. There are no sidewalks. There is no shoulder after the on ramp meets the roadway. The speed limit is 40mph.

Date	1/27/2022, 2:26 PM
Location	50 Pine Cone Dr.
Town	Yarmouth
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	76
Sex	F

CapeCod.com reports that a 76 year old woman was struck and killed by the driver of an SUV near Pine Cone Drive and Rainbow Road in Yarmouth.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this road is under local jurisdiction. It is a two-way street with a four way stop signed intersection. There are no sidewalks. The speed limit is 30mph.

Date	1/29/2022, 12:33 AM
Location	34 Fairview Rd.
Town	Canton
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	46
Sex	M

MassLive reports that 46 year old John O’Keefe was hit and killed when his girlfriend Karen Read backed her SUV into him:

Prosecutors said Wednesday that they believe Karen Read backed her car into her boyfriend, Boston Police Officer John O’Keefe, hours before he was found in the early snow drifts of Saturday’s nor’easter, suffering injuries that would later kill him.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this road is under local jurisdiction. It is a two-way road with one lane in each direction. There is a sidewalk on one side. The speed limit is 30mph.

Route 138 Reconstruction Comment Letter

March 2, 2010

Secretary Ian Bowles
Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs
MEPA Office 100 Cambridge Street, Suite 900
Boston, MA 02114

RE: Comments on the Environmental Notification Form for the roadway reconstruction of Turnpike Street, Route 138 in Canton.
EOEA #14535

Dear Mr. Bowles:

WalkBoston appreciates the opportunity to provide comments on the Environmental Notification Form for the roadway reconstruction of Turnpike Street, Route 138 in Canton. The proposal calls for reconstruction of the roadway between Sassamon Street and Randolph Street in Canton, and includes a sidewalk on the west side of the street. This sidewalk will be 5.5 feet wide.

We applaud the state for constructing this sidewalk in an area that is in need of facilities for the safety of pedestrians and are pleased to see a pedestrian network beginning to evolve in the vicinity of the town center and the educational campuses on Randolph Street. Our concerns about the installation of the new sidewalks are discussed below.

It appears that the proposed new sidewalk on the west side of Turnpike Street will complement the existing limited width sidewalks along this street north and south of the project area. When completed, this sidewalk plus the sidewalks to the north and south of it will provide a pedestrian facility extending along Washington/Turnpike Street from the Route 128/I-93 interchange to about 600 south of Randolph Street. This is commendable and very welcome. It also suggests the need for continuity of the sidewalks on the full length of this important local street and its connections via sidewalks on Washington Street and Randolph Street into the center of the community. One of the problems we see regularly in sidewalk construction is that the necessary clear walking widths are not always preserved. Frequently, utility poles and signal utility boxes are placed directly within the sidewalk, significantly reducing the clear width available to pedestrians. This is the case with the existing sidewalks along Turnpike and Washington Streets which are very narrow and which have utility poles rendering them difficult to use, particularly for those in wheelchairs. We trust that the new sidewalks will be designed with sufficient clear width to enable comfortable and safe use by pedestrians and people in wheelchairs.

Adequate sidewalk widths are also important if bus service is provided. While there is apparently no current bus service along this portion of Turnpike Street, if future bus service is anticipated, the clear width should be enlarged where buses might stop – especially near intersections such as Randolph Street.

The sidewalk cross slope design should be closely examined for its effects on walkers or wheelchairs, in particular at driveways where steep slopes can be uncomfortable for both pedestrians and wheelchair users, can be slippery in snowy or icy conditions, and potentially dangerous if pitched steeply toward the street.

We note that the principal intersections with Turnpike Street at Randolph Street and at Washington Street already have traffic signals in place. As part of this project, countdown signals should be added in both locations to help pedestrians cross the intersection.

Wheelchair ramps are already in position at both sides of the intersection at Turnpike and Randolph Streets and at Turnpike and Washington Streets, and cut-throughs are in place in the pedestrian refuge island in the intersection of Turnpike and Washington Streets. However, no marked crosswalks exist to connect these facilities. Marked crosswalks should be added to both intersections.

We suggest that the plan include signs in advance of each pedestrian crossing to warn drivers to slow down and be alert for pedestrians.

Over time, we urge MassDot to consider widening the existing sidewalks on Turnpike and Washington Streets which are narrow and have frequent utility poles. In addition, new and or improved sidewalks should be added wherever possible. Future construction of walkways along Randolph Street to the Blue Hills Regional Technical High School and Massasoit Community College would be a welcome improvement.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the Environmental Notification Form for the roadway reconstruction of Turnpike Street, Route 138 in Canton. Please contact us for any clarification or additional comments that you may need.

Sincerely,

Robert Sloane
Senior Planner