It was a brutal year for people on foot in Massachusetts. A new statewide analysis finds that 76 pedestrians were killed on the Commonwealth’s roads in 2025, making those on foot account for more than one in five traffic deaths. Older adults were hit especially hard: residents 65 and older made up roughly 43 percent of the victims while representing less than 19 percent of the state’s population. Most of the deadly crashes happened on local streets, often after dark, and Environmental Justice neighborhoods shouldered a disproportionate share of the loss.
According to a report by WalkMassachusetts, which analyzed MassDOT crash records, at least 76 pedestrians died in 2025, about 21 percent of the state’s 354 traffic fatalities. The group reports that 43.4 percent of those killed were age 65 or older, 69.7 percent of fatal crashes occurred in the dark, and 71.1 percent took place on streets with posted speeds between 25 and 35 miles per hour. WalkMassachusetts notes that the state database can miss deaths that occur more than 30 days after a crash and urges renewed local and statewide safety efforts, including giving municipalities the option to use speed and red light cameras.
The deaths were spread across 49 municipalities, but a handful of cities saw the highest numbers. Boston recorded eight pedestrian fatalities and Springfield had six, Boston Globe reporting shows. Holyoke, Lowell, West Springfield and Worcester each reported three pedestrian deaths, while Brockton, Framingham, Lawrence, Pittsfield, Quincy and Randolph were among the communities with two deaths apiece.
Counting Deaths and National Context
WalkMassachusetts notes that if Massachusetts used the federal Fatality Analysis Reporting System method, the statewide count for 2025 would rise by roughly 11 deaths, since some long-term fatalities and certain crash classifications do not show up in the state crash database. Nationally, early federal estimates indicate that overall traffic deaths fell in the first half of 2025, even as pedestrian crashes remain a stubborn problem, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Where Change Is Happening
There are a few bright spots in the otherwise grim picture. Somerville, for example, reported zero traffic fatalities for a third consecutive year and roughly a 50 percent decline in serious-injury crashes, according to the city’s end-of-term report covering 2022 through 2025. Local advocates and planners point to the city’s Vision Zero investments and neighborhood traffic-calming measures, including speed humps, safer intersection designs and changes to traffic signals, as key contributors to that progress.
What Advocates Want
Advocates say the numbers point to three straightforward priorities for state and local leaders: slow vehicles on local streets, improve lighting where people walk and target upgrades in Environmental Justice neighborhoods that are shouldering the highest risk. For a fuller breakdown of the data and maps of the crashes, WalkMassachusetts and the Boston Globe have compiled public-facing summaries, while municipal staff and researchers can dig into the underlying records through MassDOT’s crash portal.
