Tag: Framingham

Statewide Fatal Crashes in MA, February 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 5 fatal crashes listed in the MassDOT Crash Portal in January. In this post, we’ll look at crashes in MA in February 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 19 fatal crashes in Massachusetts in February in the MassDOT Crash portal, 4 were people walking.
3 of those 4 crashes were on limited access highways. In 2 of those crashes, tractor trailer drivers struck and killed a driver who exited a vehicle after it had broken down.
The crash portal does not include names. The names of 2 of the people walking who died have not been made public yet.
The name of the person driving was not identified in any of the 4 crashes in news articles.
2 people lost their lives at a construction site in Boston in February when a co-worker hit them with a vehicle, pushing them into an open trench. That incident is not listed in the MassDOT Crash Portal. The Boston Globe wrote at least two follow up stories about 33-year-old Jose Carlos Figueroa-Gutierrez and 27-year-old Jordan Romero: “One day later, makeshift memorial for two construction workers only sign of tragedy in Boston,” “A sister mourns for brother killed at downtown Boston construction site.”

Date	2/2/2021, 11:30 PM
Location	I-90 EAST, MM 87.0
Town	Oxford
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	33
Sex	M

A 33 year old Hartford man was struck and killed on on I-90 (the MassPike) by the driver of a tractor trailer. WHDH reported that he was hit after his Toyota Camry broke down and he got out of the car to examine the problem.

Date	2/8/2021, 5:55 PM
Location	418 Winthrop Ave.
Town	Lawrence
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	70
Sex	F

A 70 year old woman was hit and killed on Winthrop Ave (Rt 114) on the North Andover / Lawrence line. The Boston Globe reported that the scene of the crash on Route 114 was near the North Andover Mall. Rt 114 is 4 lanes (2 travel lanes each direction) in front of the North Andover Mall and 3 lanes after the driveway intersection. There is only a sidewalk on one side of the street. According to the MassDOT Road Inventory, Winthrop Ave/Rt 114 is under MassDOT jurisdiction.

According to Google Streetview, the sidewalk is relatively new and under construction as of November 2019. There is only a sidewalk on one side of the street, but it did not exist prior to November 2019. New curb ramps are in place but only go across the driveway entrance, not Rt 114. The nearest crosswalks across Rt 114 are 0.9 miles away from each other, with the shopping center roughly in between. A housing development is also on the other side of the street from the shopping center.

Date	2/13/2021, 5:55 AM
Location	I-90 EAST, MM 116.2
Town	Framingham
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	57
Sex	M

Mustapha Faddi, a 57 year old Marlborough man, was struck and killed on I-90 (the MassPike) by the driver of a tractor trailer. Mustapha’s Nissan Murano broke down and he got out of the car to examine the problem. The Patch shared that this was the second fatal crash on the MassPike in February involving a disable vehicle & tractor trailer.

Date	2/27/2021, 11:40 PM
Location	I-93 NORTH, south of EXIT 33
Town	Medford
Type	PEDESTRIAN
Age	22
Sex	F

Madeleine Fox, a 22 year old woman, was hit and killed after she got out of her friend’s car on I-93. NBC Boston reports that investigators are working to identify a description of the vehicle or vehicles that might have hit her.

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.

One Minute, One Slide: WalkMA & Framingham Youth Walking Advocates

Below is a “One Minute, One Slide” presentation shared by a member of the WalkBoston staff.
Text provided is as prepared for this year’s annual event on September 23, 2020 on Zoom.

LeighAnne Taylor

I’m LeighAnne Taylor, Program Manager at WalkBoston.

The WalkMassachusetts Network is a statewide network of multi-sectoral groups working on walking across the Commonwealth. In February, WalkBoston staff and members of the WalkMassachusetts Network convened for our second Network-wide forum in Framingham to provide opportunity for members to connect and share best practices. During the half-day forum, members shared their local wins for walkability and participated in “advocacy clinics,” aimed to strengthen their walking efforts. We are excited to build on the momentum of this forum and are planning for WalkMassachusetts Network virtual events. Join the network and stay tuned.

The second project I’ll highlight is WalkBoston’s Youth Working Towards Walkable Streets initiative with the MetroWest Boys and Girls Club in Framingham. With funding from the MetroWest Health Foundation, we are working with an enthusiastic group of 6-8th graders to teach them about the elements of walkable communities and to help them build skills to advocate for community change. In January, we kicked this work off with a series of practice-based learning sessions. We look forward to picking this work back up in 2021 and are excited to support these youth leaders in making changes to the built environment and local policies to support safer, more enjoyable walking in Framingham.

Dennison Crossing Walk Audit – Framingham, MA

On Thursday, September 13, 2018, WalkBoston conducted a walk audit at Dennison Crossing in Framingham as part of the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security’s (EOPSS) Pedestrian Safety Planning Initiative for High-Fatality Communities. The EOPSS Pedestrian Safety Planning Initiative builds municipal staff understanding and awareness of the components of a safe walking environment. WalkBoston is working in partnership with EOPSS to address walking safety concerns in Massachusetts communities with high pedestrian crash rates, with the goal of reducing pedestrian fatalities and serious injuries in the Commonwealth. According to data provided to WalkBoston by EOPSS, Framingham has seen 3 pedestrian fatalities and 128 serious pedestrian injury crashes between 2012 – 2017.

Read the full report here:

WalkBoston-DennisonCrossing-Final

Still waiting in Framingham

WalkBoston conducted a walk audit yesterday at Dennison Crossing in Framingham where we waited over 5 minutes for a WALK signal at one of the crosswalks. Whether due to signal preemption or a faulty signal, participants experienced firsthand how long it takes to walk about 500 feet (over 10 minutes!).

Thanks to representatives from the Framingham Dept. of Public Works and Dept. of Community and Economic Development, Downtown Framingham Inc, MetroWest Regional Transit Authority (MWRTA), South Middlesex Opportunity Council (SMOC), and the Council on Aging for their patience as we followed the rules and waited for the WALK signal (at least most of the time) on this EOPSS-funded walk audit in this growing area of Framingham.

WalkBoston/EOPSS Pedestrian Safety Initiative

The WalkBoston/EOPSS Pedestrian Safety Planning Initiative builds municipal staff understanding and awareness of the components of a safe walking environment. The initiative addresses walking safety concerns in Massachusetts communities with high pedestrian crash rates, with the goal of reducing pedestrian fatalities and serious injuries in the Commonwealth. Communities selected for participation in the initiative include: Barnstable, Chelsea, Chicopee, Framingham, Leominster, Lowell, Peabody, Randolph, Saugus, Springfield, and Yarmouth.

Cities and towns participating in the Pedestrian Safety Planning Initiative have used the results to prioritize pedestrian improvements, negotiate infrastructure fixes into development approvals, and apply for funding sources, such as from the MassDOT’s Complete Streets Funding Program.

WalkBoston conducts a walk audit focused on high pedestrian crash locations. A walk audit provides on-street, tangible learning opportunities for diverse groups of municipal staff, including police, as well as residents and other community-based groups. During the audit, we assess pedestrian infrastructure conditions and recommend built environment improvements that promote safety. Walk audits are also an effective means to build local constituencies for pedestrian safety efforts that include increased education and awareness opportunities for all road users, and greater attention to safety in local roadway design and maintenance efforts.

Participation in this EOPSS/WalkBoston Initiative has increased the awareness and readiness of municipal staff to adopt and implement complete streets policies and designs that will reduce fatal and injury crashes for all road users (including pedestrians, motorists and bicyclists) as called for under MassDOT’s Complete Streets Funding Program.