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Statewide Fatal Crashes In MA, March 2024

Throughout the year, we post about the fatal crashes in Massachusetts from a previous month, and share any trends that we see. For the full list of monthly posts, head here.

In our previous post, we took a look at crashes listed in the MassDOT Crash Portal in February; seven were identified as people walking. In this post, we’ll look at crashes in MA in March 2024. The information in the chart below is compiled from news reports, and was checked against the MassDOT Crash Portal Dashboard “Fatal Crash Information.” Any Google Street View images included below use the address listed in the crash portal.

Of the 22 fatal crashes in Massachusetts in March in the MassDOT Crash portal, 7 were identified as people walking.
At least two of the crashes involved people who knew each other and a vehicle backing up.
The average age of pedestrians hit & killed in March was 44.7.

Date	3/2/2024, 8:26 PM
Location	149 Pleasant St.
Town	Attleboro
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	74
Sex	M

NBC10 WJAR reports 74-year old Basil Bletsis was struck and killed while trying to cross Pleasant Street (Rt 123).

From WJAR:

Residents of the Pleasant Street Rest Home said the victim of Saturday’s fatal collision, a 74-year-old man, was a friend, neighbor, and roommate, adding the mishap came as less of a shock, and more as a reflection of reality, living along Route 123.
Several rest home residents said they believe the victim was probably trying to make it across the street on his way to the Stop and Shop supermarket about a block away.
Several residents of the rest home said they hope this tragedy sheds light on what they described as the desperate need for increased pedestrian safety measures throughout the neighborhood.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Pleasant Street is under local jurisdiction. It is a two-way road with two travel lanes in each direction. There is a sidewalk on both sides of the street. The speed limit is 30mph.

Date	3/2/2024, 8:53 PM
Location	47 State Rd. West
Town	Westminster
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	36
Sex	M

The Gardner News reports that the driver of a car struck a pedestrian on Route 2A resulting in fatal injuries.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, State Road West (Rt 2A) is under MassDOT jurisdiction. It is a two-way road with one travel lane in each direction. There is no sidewalk. The speed limit is 45mph.

Date	3/3/2024, 2:56 AM
Location	I-93 NORTH, MM 35
Town	Wilmington
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	47
Sex	M

A 47-year old man was struck and killed on I-93 North near mile marker 35 in Wilmington. The Wilmington Police log from that date states, “One party was ejected. Injuries.” We could not find any additional news coverage of this incident.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, I-93 is under MassDOT jurisdiction. It is a two-way limited access highway with four travel lanes in each direction. The speed limit is 65mph.

Date	3/10/2024, 9:14 PM
Location	169 Squire Rd.
Town	Revere
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	28
Sex	F

The Boston Globe reports 28-year old Sofia Isabel Mejia Zambrano was struck and killed by the driver of a vehicle Sunday night while crossing Route 60 on her way to catch a bus after her shift had ended at Market Basket, according to law enforcement and a store manager.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Squire Road is under MassDOT jurisdiction. It is a two-way road with two travel lanes in one direction and three travel lanes in the other direction. There is a sidewalk on both sides of the street. The speed limit is 30mph.

Date	3/24/2024, 5:06 PM
Location	Congress St. + Sleeper St.
Town	Boston
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	4
Sex	F

4-year old Gracie Gancheva was struck and killed after being struck by a pickup truck driver who turned onto Sleeper Street.

From the Boston Globe:

“This is an almost unimaginable tragedy,” Jascha Franklin-Hodge, Mayor Michelle Wu’s chief of streets, told residents Saturday morning.
He said the changes to Sleeper Street should be underway in the next few weeks. Officials already have removed one parking spot on Congress Street near the intersection and plan to replace it with a box of flex poles, allowing visibility but making drivers unable to cut the corner quickly. The city also will look at the narrow partial sidewalk on one side of the road, with an eye toward potentially expanding it to a full sidewalk.
The broader redesign of the area’s streets is on track to start next year, he said. That will include a raised crosswalk at the intersection where the girl died.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Sleeper Street is under local jurisdiction. It is a two-way road with one travel lane in each direction. There is a sidewalk on one side of the street, and a narrow curb edge on the other. The speed limit is 25mph.

Date	3/29/2024, 12:28 PM
Location	370 Park Ave.
Town	Worcester
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	88
Sex	M

An 88-year old man was struck and killed by a 69-year old driver as they were returning to their vehicle after getting coffee, according to Boston 25 News:

Investigators say the victim and a 69-year-old man went to get a coffee at a local establishment and upon returning to their vehicle, the 69-year-old got into the car and allegedly accelerated backward and then forwards, striking the 88-year-old victim who was standing outside.

It is unclear from the reporting if the incident happened along the roadway or in an adjacent parking lot.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Park Avenue is under local jurisdiction. It is a two-way road with two travel lanes in each direction. There is a sidewalk on both sides of the street. There are crosswalks for all legs of the intersection. The speed limit is 30mph.

Date	3/29/2024, 7:13 PM
Location	240 Second St.
Town	Chelsea
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	36
Sex	F

The Boston Globe reports 36-year old Jean Baptiste was struck in the head and killed by a sign while standing on a sidewalk after the driver of a 2010 Subaru Outback crashed into the sign post.

From the Boston Globe:

Baptiste got out of the Subaru about 7:10 p.m. and stood on the sidewalk as the driver pulled forward and toward the left, then put the SUV in reverse, indicating that he was making a three-point turn, State Police said in a statement.
The SUV then accelerated in reverse and jumped the curb, striking a metal post that held a “no parking” sign next to where the woman was standing, according to the statement.
“The force of the car striking the signpost caused the sign to come down violently and strike the woman in the head,” State Police said. “The vehicle itself does not appear to have made contact with the woman.”

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Second Street is under local jurisdiction. It is a two-way road with one travel lane in each direction. There is a sidewalk on both sides of the street. The speed limit is 30mph.

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 2024 list. WalkMassachusetts 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.
Monthly crash review
Report: Fatal Pedestrian Crashes in MA (2021)
Report: Fatal Pedestrian Crashes in MA (2022)
Report: Fatal Pedestrian Crashes in MA (2023)

Reminder about the data from the MassDOT portal
MassDOT makes no representation as to the accuracy, adequacy, reliability, availability or completeness of the crash records or the data collected from them and is not responsible for any errors or omissions in such records or data. Under no circumstance will MassDOT have any liability for any loss or damage incurred by any party as a result of the use of the crash records or the data collected from them. Furthermore, the data contained in the web-based crash report tool are not an official record of what transpired in a particular crash or for a particular crash type. If a user is interested in an official copy of a crash report, contact the Registry (http://www.mass.gov/rmv/). The most current information on IMPACT regarding motor vehicle fatalities can be found at (https://apps.impact.dot.state.ma.us/cdp/dashboard-view/2047/). Other places on IMPACT may not be as current and the motor vehicle fatality information may not match. The City of Boston Police Department may be contacted directly for official copies of crash reports and for crash data pertaining to the City of Boston. In addition, any crash records or data provided for the years after 2021 are subject to change at any time and are not to be considered up-to-date or complete. As such, open years’ of crash data are for informational purposes only and should not be used for analysis. The data posted on this website, including crash records and other reports, are collected for the purpose of identifying, evaluating or planning the safety enhancement of potential crash sites, hazardous roadway conditions or railway-highway crossings. Under federal law, this information is not subject to discovery and cannot be admitted into evidence in any federal or state court proceeding or considered for other purposes in any action for damages that involves the sites mentioned in these records (see 23 USC, Section 407).

Statewide Fatal Crashes In MA, February 2023

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 2022 in the coming weeks to highlight common issues. You can read the year in review for 2021 here.

Last month, we took a look at crashes listed in the MassDOT Crash Portal in January; four were identified as people walking. In this post, we’ll look at crashes in MA in February 2023. The information in the chart below is compiled from news reports, and was checked against the MassDOT Crash Portal Dashboard “Fatal Crash Information.” Any Google Street View images included below use the address listed in the crash portal.

Of the 31 fatal crashes in Massachusetts in February in the MassDOT Crash portal, 8 were identified as people walking.
The average age of pedestrians hit & killed in February was 61.125.
Two of the crashes were hit & runs.

Date	2/6/2023, 5:43 PM
Location	484 Pittsfield Rd.
Town	Lenox
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	68
Sex	M

The Berkshire Eagle reports that 68-year old Paul Gerard Ouellette was struck by the driver of a Hyundai Elantra while Paul was crossing Pittsfield Road at nighttime in heavy traffic trying to get to the Knights Inn, where he had been staying. He died four days later at Albany Medical Center.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this road is under MassDOT jurisdiction. It is a two-way street, with 2 travel lane in each direction and a middle turn lane. There is a sidewalk on both sides. The speed limit is 40mph.

Date	2/11/2023, 4:45 AM
Location	Crescent Ave. EAST + Vernon St.
Town	Chelsea
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	49
Sex	M

A 49-year old man was struck and killed at 4:45am on Saturday morning. We could not find any additional news coverage of this incident.

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. There is a sidewalk and street parking on one side of the street, and a buffered bike lane on the other side. The speed limit is unclear in the Road Inventory since it is listed as 99; the city of Chelsea has a default speed limit of 25mph.

Date	2/16/2023, 4:04 PM
Location	Chicopee St. + Florence St.
Town	Chicopee
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	78
Sex	M

Western Mass News reports that a 78-year old man was struck and killed on Chicopee Street in Chicopee; this was the third fatal crash on Chicopee Street within the past three months, both in November 2022.

Susan Santoro, a resident who has lived on Chicopee Street for over three years said it’s an extremely dangerous road.
“First we had Bill who was a pedestrian, and he was hit and killed,” said Santoro. “Then we had Gary, and he was run over by a hit and run driver.”
“I have to get my grandson, that gets home from school every day,” explained Santoro. “They don’t stop for me. I absolutely take my life into my hands.”
“How many pedestrians are going to be killed before we can get something done here on Chicopee Street?” asked Santoro. “It just doesn’t make any sense to me.”

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. There is a sidewalk on both sides, and crosswalks at the intersection with Florence St. The speed limit is 35mph.

Date	2/20/2023, 4:15 AM
Location	128 Dilla St.
Town	Milford
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	31
Sex	M

NBC Boston reports that a 31-year old man was struck and killed early Sunday on Dilla Street near the rear entrance to a Wendy’s parking lot.

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. There is an extra travel lane as Dilla St approaches Rt 85. There are no sidewalks. The speed limit is unclear in the Road Inventory since it is listed as 99.

Date	2/24/2023, 1:22 AM
Location	I-95 SOUTH, EXIT 33
Town	Needham
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	28
Sex	M

The Boston Globe reports 28-year old Justin P. Kelley was struck and killed in a hit and run crash as he was walking in the breakdown lane; the driver fled the scene. Troopers located potential debris evidence that may have come from the driver’s vehicle that struck him.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this road is under MassDOT jurisdiction. There are four travel lanes on the south side, a shoulder, and a divided median. The speed limit is 55mph.

Date	2/26/2023, 6:46 PM
Location	520 Foundry St.
Town	Easton
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	84
Sex	M

WJAR/Turn to 10 reports that 84-year old Michael Ginsberg was struck and killed after leaving his favorite restaurant.

Ever Amaya [the owner of La Familia Restaurant] showed NBC 10 surveillance footage of the moments leading up to the collision. The video shows a man attempting to cross the street on Foundry with oncoming traffic moving in both directions. There is no crosswalk or sidewalks connecting La Familia to the other side of the road.
“He was crossing the street because he lives like a block from here,” said Amaya. “He used to come a million times so it’s sad that last night was the last.”
…”Accidents like that can happen because there’s no sidewalks on the street either and it’s kind of dark,” said Amaya.

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. There are no sidewalks. The speed limit is 40mph.

Date	2/28/2023, 6:00 PM
Location	690 North Quincy St.
Town	Brockton
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	70
Sex	M

NBC Boston reports 70 year-old Leland Thompson was struck and killed after being hit by at least one SUV while trying to cross the street.

Brockton police said he was hit about 6 p.m. on North Quincy Street. A Buick Enclave hit Thompson, according to prosecutors, and its driver stopped and tried to stop traffic.
That’s when the other SUV, a white Jeep Wrangler, appeared to hit Thompson around his legs, according to prosecutors. They didn’t share more information about the vehicle or specify what kind of contact it made with Thompson, including whether it’s believed to have contributed to his death. The driver is also being sought.

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. There is a sidewalk on both sides. The speed limit is 30mph.

Date	2/28/2023, 6:24 PM
Location	121 Sconticut Neck Rd.
Town	Fairhaven
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	81
Sex	F

WJAR/Turn to 10 reports that 81-year old Carolyn Preece died at St. Luke’s Hospital days after being struck by a car.

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. There is a sidewalk on one side of the road. The speed limit is 35mph.

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 2023 list. 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: | ||||| 2022
Report: Fatal Pedestrian Crashes in MA (2021)
Report: Fatal Pedestrian Crashes in MA (2022) – anticipated report publication late March 2023

Reminder about the data from the MassDOT portal
MassDOT makes no representation as to the accuracy, adequacy, reliability, availability or completeness of the crash records or the data collected from them and is not responsible for any errors or omissions in such records or data. Under no circumstance will MassDOT have any liability for any loss or damage incurred by any party as a result of the use of the crash records or the data collected from them. Furthermore, the data contained in the web-based crash report tool are not an official record of what transpired in a particular crash or for a particular crash type. If a user is interested in an official copy of a crash report, contact the Registry (http://www.mass.gov/rmv/). The City of Boston Police Department may be contacted directly for official copies of crash reports and for crash data pertaining to the City of Boston. In addition, any crash records or data provided for the years after 2018 are subject to change at any time and are not to be considered up-to-date or complete. As such, open years’ of crash data are for informational purposes only and should not be used for analysis. The data posted on this website, including crash records and other reports, are collected for the purpose of identifying, evaluating or planning the safety enhancement of potential crash sites, hazardous roadway conditions or railway-highway crossings. Under federal law, this information is not subject to discovery and cannot be admitted into evidence in any federal or state court proceeding or considered for other purposes in any action for damages that involves the sites mentioned in these records (see 23 USC, Section 409).

WalkBoston Comments on 2022 MBTA Bus Network Redesign

July 31, 2022

Andrew MacFarland
Manager of Bus System Enhancements, MBTA

via email: BetterBusProject@mbta.com

RE: WalkBoston Comments on 2022 MBTA Bus Network Redesign

Dear Andrew:

WalkBoston is Massachusetts’ primary pedestrian advocacy organization, working across the Commonwealth to make it safer and easier for people to walk for all activities of daily living such as access to transit, school and jobs. We are writing with comments about the MBTA Bus Network Redesign.

We are happy to see this project continuing to move forward. This is a critical process to achieve the significant goal of increasing service hours and high frequency service throughout the greater Boston area. This redesign proposes to make connections that do not currently exist because development patterns have changed since many of these routes were initially created; it also does not focus solely on work commutes, and introduces seven day a week service for more routes than before. This plan is also a climate plan, since transit is necessary to support mode shift. We need to get people out of cars for more of their everyday trips. It is essential to expand the reach and frequency of our bus networks and provide complete mobility networks with safe, accessible options for walking, biking and transit.

We believe this plan has the opportunity to help communities prioritize funds to modify streets and sidewalks. Cities and towns will know where they can make bus service even better by creating bus-only lanes, upgrading signals for transit signal priority and for pedestrian safety, adding shelters and benches at bus stops, adding shade trees to make walking access to transit cooler in the summer, and shoveling bus stops and sidewalks in the winter to allow for safe, accessible access to bus stops year round.

Our comments focus on three main conditions that will impact people walking, and we have provided an example location for each.

Ensure that locations where an increased number of transfers will occur are safe and prioritize pedestrians by including fully accessible and safe street crossings, providing clear wayfinding, and providing seating.
Example: Roxbury Crossing, Boston.

At Roxbury Crossing, more people will be transferring between buses and the Orange Line at the intersection of Tremont St/Columbus Ave/Malcolm X Blvd, which also includes a crossing for the Southwest Corridor path. These are wide roadways that have high volumes of vehicular traffic, and, especially at off-peak times, high speed traffic speeds. The MBTA should work with Boston to ensure that street and sidewalk changes are made to make it safer to cross the street for people transferring between modes. Possible changes that the City of Boston may consider include setting shorter signal cycles so people have shorter waits to cross the street, or mid-block crosswalks and crossing islands or raised crosswalks directly outside the Orange Line station doors to enable a direct walking connection to the bus stop.

Ensure locations are weather resilient throughout the year.
Example: Union Square, Somerville.

We are already starting to see the effects of an unstable climate through increasingly frequent intense storms, flooding and heat. In Union Square, heavy rain storms in previous years flooded the square and overwhelmed the combined sewer overflow system. A massive sewer separation project has been underway to mitigate these issues, and bus shelters, rain gardens, and additional street crossings have been added during this effort.

To ensure safe, accessible, and comfortable mobility year round, we need investment in public realm resiliency: reflective, porous surfaces, and shading tree canopies during the hottest days of the summer; and street and sidewalk maintenance to keep pathways clear and accessible after winter storms. Our transportation system must be as resilient as possible, and that includes bus stops. The MBTA should consider adopting recommendations that they can share with all municipalities for bus stop benches and shelters to give people the chance to sit down in a shady or dry location. We urge you to look at best practices for creating inclusive spaces.

With the adoption of more high-frequency routes and corridors to replace the 15 “Key Bus Routes,” we believe the snow clearance commitment that those Key Routes had should be extended to the high-frequency routes. People must be able to walk safely to a bus stop and not have to wait in the street or climb over an inaccessible snow pile to get on or off a bus. Ensuring stops are clear will also benefit bus drivers, so that they can fully pull into the curb. Many bus operators report concern for the safety of riders as they witness people trying to climb over snow mounds or walking in the street because sidewalks and bus stops are not cleared.

Consider impacts to transit dependent senior housing locations.
Example: Route 112 (Soldiers’ Home, Chelsea).

While WalkBoston has not analyzed individual bus route modifications, additions and eliminations, we have reviewed comments from a number of different communities that are focused on changes that may significantly impact locations with large vulnerable, transit dependent populations. In Chelsea, the 112 bus currently serves two hills, with low income senior and veteran housing. It will be replaced with a high frequency line that will forgo the two hills. The hills will be connected via a local shuttle, where residents will have to transfer at the Market Basket Plaza or Bellingham Sq. to access the key bus routes. This will be detrimental to these two vulnerable populations.

We urge the MBTA to take those comments seriously and to consider changes in access between such uses as grocery stores and senior housing, or dense housing and parks that serve those neighborhoods. The service areas of such facilities often cross municipal boundaries. We also ask that the MBTA consider the comments which note that route changes will require people to walk some distance in very hilly parts of the MBTA service area.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment.

Stacey Beuttell

Executive Director, WalkBoston

Statewide Fatal Crashes In MA, July 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 4 fatal crashes listed in the MassDOT Crash Portal in June. In this post, we’ll look at crashes in MA in July 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 27 fatal crashes in Massachusetts in July in the MassDOT Crash portal, 6 were identified as people walking. There was at least 1 additional fatal incident during July, announced in a press release by the MA State Police (MSP):
- On July 12th, an unidentified 50 year old man was found deceased on the I-90 Exit 135 ramp. (Editor’s note: Since this crash is not listed in the crash portal, it is possible that MSP investigators ruled the person died prior to the crash or that it was a suicide, either of which would mean it would not appear in the FARS data.)
The crash portal does not include names. The names of 3 of the people walking who died have not been made public yet.
The average age of pedestrians hit & killed in July was 53.3.
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.

Date	7/3/2021, 6:56 AM
Location	Weld St.
Town	West Roxbury
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	63
Sex	F

A 63-year-old woman was struck & killed by a driver on Weld St near West Roxbury Parkway. The driver had just turned right off the parkway onto Weld. We could not find news articles about this crash.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this street is under local jurisdiction. This stretch of road is two-way, with a travel lane in each direction. The road is 37 feet wide. Boston has a citywide 25mph default speed limit.

Date	7/10/2021, 11:52 AM
Location	80 Bellingham St.
Town	Chelsea
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	1
Sex	M

A 19-month-old boy was struck and killed in Chelsea by a 45-year-old woman driving an SUV that had just picked up a rider.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this street is under local jurisdiction. This stretch of road is one-way, with a travel lane and a parking lane. The road is 24 feet wide. Chelsea has a citywide 25mph default speed limit.

WBZ-TV reported that speeding is a problem on Bellingham Street:

Neighbors tell us Bellingham Street is notorious for speeding and with two playgrounds nearby, they hope this tragedy will spark change.
“All these houses here, they all have little kids in them. Like I said, this street is like a racetrack and something needs to happen,” said [neighbor Paul] Ford. “People see things happen firsthand today – hopefully it sends a message.”

Date	7/13/2021, 8:54 AM
Location	Wilbraham Rd. + Massachusetts Ave.
Town	Springfield
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	65
Sex	F

Margaret “Lani” Kretschmar, age 65, was hit and killed while crossing Wilbraham Road in a crosswalk. Margaret was an employee at American International College in Springfield. Western Mass News reports that the City of Springfield promises to make the intersection safer.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this street is under local jurisdiction. This stretch of road is one lane in each direction. The road is 40 feet wide. The speed limit is 30mph.

WalkBoston and Way Finders conducted a walk audit that included a section of Wilbraham Road earlier this summer (summary, full report). While the crosswalk where this crash occurred was not part of the walk audit route, Wilbraham Road was called out in the first key recommendation:

Improve pedestrian safety and comfort on Wilbraham Road Wilbraham Road is a 2-lane collector street with parallel parking on both sides. The area is primarily single and multi-family residences with several restaurants and churches along the road. Vehicular traffic volumes are relatively high with drivers frequently hitting high speeds for such a dense neighborhood district. While there are wide sidewalks for pedestrians, additional infrastructure is needed to provide a safer and healthier walking environment.

Date	7/17/2021, 2:45 AM
Location	187 Pleasant St. Ralph Talbot St.
Town	Weymouth
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	61
Sex	F

Xuan “Sue” Vo, age 61, was struck and killed in a hit and run crash. She had stopped by a neighbor’s house to use the internet on Friday night and indicated she would take a walk before bed. She was found on the sidewalk at 2:45AM by a patrol officer. The person driving has not yet been found.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this street is under local jurisdiction. This stretch of road is one lane in each direction with shoulders on each side. The road is 44 feet wide. The speed limit is unclear based on incomplete info in the Road Inventory database for this street.

A Wicked Local Weymouth/Weymouth News article from 2019 indicated efforts to regulate speeding drivers on nearby Park Avenue due to dangerous behavior.

Similarly, NBC Boston reports that speeding is a problem on Pleasant Street:

Patrick Barfield says the road where the fatal crash occurred is already an area of focus for police because of excessive speeding.
“This road unfortunately, we have a lot of people coming down here with a high speed,” Barfield said, “and actually the police have already been staking it out giving people tickets for it.”

Date	7/27/2021, 5:58 PM
Location	832 East St.
Town	Walpole
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	81
Sex	F

The Boston Globe reports that an unidentified 81-year-old woman was hit and killed by a driver on East Street in Walpole.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this street is under local jurisdiction. This stretch of road is one lane in each direction with shoulders on each side. The speed limit is 35 mph and there are sidewalks.

Date	7/27/2021, 11:52 PM
Location	947 Providence Hwy. + Elm St.
Town	Dedham
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	49
Sex	M

WHDH reported that 49-year-old Stephen P. Hogan was hit and killed while crossing Providence Highway (Rt 1) at Elm Street by an unidentified driver of a Nissan Altima.

According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, this street is under MassDOT jurisdiction. This stretch of road is 3-4 lanes in each direction with sidewalks on each side. The speed limit is 40 mph.

In 2014, MAPC collaborated with the Towns of Dedham and Westwood to create a Dedham and Westwood Bicycle and Pedestrian Network Plan. Page 9 of this plan reads:

“Rt 1 at Elm St (Dedham) Adjacent to Legacy Place, this intersection experiences high pedestrian volumes accessing bus routes on the opposite side of Rt 1. The wide street crossing plus high turning speeds creates unnecessary barriers primarily in terms of the length of the crossing. This intersection has relatively new sidewalks and crosswalks, but does not diminish the scale of the crossing. Responsibility – MassDOT.”

In 2019, the Town of Dedham established the Active Transportation Working Group to improve safety for non-vehicular travel in Dedham. The charter of this working group charges it with the responsibility to advocate for safe transportation connections between Route 1 and Route 1A in the Dedham corridor; this group is actively working to have MassDOT address this intersection (see letter).

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
MassDOT makes no representation as to the accuracy, adequacy, reliability, availability or completeness of the crash records or the data collected from them and is not responsible for any errors or omissions in such records or data. Under no circumstance will MassDOT have any liability for any loss or damage incurred by any party as a result of the use of the crash records or the data collected from them. Furthermore, the data contained in the web-based crash report tool are not an official record of what transpired in a particular crash or for a particular crash type. If a user is interested in an official copy of a crash report, contact the Registry (http://www.mass.gov/rmv/). The City of Boston Police Department may be contacted directly for official copies of crash reports and for crash data pertaining to the City of Boston. In addition, any crash records or data provided for the years after 2018 are subject to change at any time and are not to be considered up-to-date or complete. As such, open years’ of crash data are for informational purposes only and should not be used for analysis. The data posted on this website, including crash records and other reports, are collected for the purpose of identifying, evaluating or planning the safety enhancement of potential crash sites, hazardous roadway conditions or railway-highway crossings. Under federal law, this information is not subject to discovery and cannot be admitted into evidence in any federal or state court proceeding or considered for other purposes in any action for damages that involves the sites mentioned in these records (see 23 USC, Section 409).

where we’ve been lately – May 2021 update

As summer approaches, we’ve been ramping up our work all over the Commonwealth!

Here are a few places we’ve been working with people lately, either in person or virtually, to help make their community more walkable:

Blandford
Boston
Brockton
Cambridge
Chelsea
Concord
Cummington
Egremont
Haverhill
Huntington
Medford
New Bedford
Quincy
Springfield
Worcester