A child was struck by a vehicle near the intersection of Stow and Milton streets in Waltham on Tuesday, and emergency crews found the child trapped under a vehicle in the roadway before beginning treatment at the scene. The child was then transported to Boston Children's Hospital. Police have not released the child's injuries or condition.
Waltham police officers, firefighters and an ambulance crew responded to the scene after a report that a vehicle had struck a child, according to the Waltham Times. A Subaru SUV, a Home Depot rental truck and an electric scooter were all nearby at the scene, with the scooter lying in the roadway, but authorities have not said whether any of the vehicles or the scooter were involved in the crash.
Police have not released details about what led to Tuesday's crash or provided further information on the child's condition, the outlet reported. The circumstances of the collision remain unclear as the investigation continues.
A Stretch Of Road With A Troubled History
Tuesday's crash happened near the site of an earlier collision at the same general location. On Dec. 16, 2024, a vehicle struck a 42-year-old man crossing Stow Street near Milton Street, and the man's injuries were not life-threatening, per the same account. Police said at the time that the area was poorly lit and had no crosswalks, and that glare from headlights combined with weather conditions contributed to that earlier crash.
Stow Street has a documented reputation beyond this single corridor. Waltham's Transportation Master Plan identified it as a popular cut-through and truck route, according to Patch. The same plan examined 92 intersections across the city and found that 29 carried crash rates above the state average, with two intersections — Trapelo Road at Lexington Street and Lexington Street at Totten Pond Road/Bacon Street — tied for the highest recorded rate in that analysis, at 1.41.
Other Recent Crashes Involving Children In Waltham
Tuesday's incident is not the only recent case involving a child and a vehicle in Waltham. In a separate crash near Charles Street Avenue, an 8-year-old riding an electric scooter was hit by a GMC pickup truck at about 5:45 p.m., according to WCVB. That child was taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, and the crash remains under investigation by the Waltham Crash Reconstruction Team, the station reported.
The December 16, 2024, pedestrian crash described above was also reported as occurring near Stow Street and Ravenswood Road, according to NBC Boston. A 42-year-old man crossing the street was struck by a northbound Toyota Camry driven by a 43-year-old woman. Police said headlights from oncoming traffic, along with weather conditions, affected the driver's ability to see the pedestrian, and noted there were no traffic signals or crosswalks at that location. The man was taken to a local hospital and was expected to survive, the station reported.
A Citywide Push For Safer Streets
City data has repeatedly flagged Waltham's road network as a safety concern well beyond any single intersection. Several intersections along the busiest parts of Main Street and Moody Street rank in the top 5% statewide for crashes involving cyclists and pedestrians, according to MassDOT's Interactive Crash Cluster Map as cited by the Waltham Times in a separate report. Statewide, a related pedestrian cluster layer maintained by geoDOT maps the top 5% of pedestrian crash clusters for each regional planning agency between 2012 and 2021.
Neighboring communities have moved to address similar concerns. Somerville has been systematically redesigning intersections to prioritize pedestrian safety, while Cambridge has implemented neighborhood traffic-calming measures, per the same Waltham Times report. North Reading has made plans to improve its Main Street. Federal guidance from the Federal Highway Administration lists high-visibility crosswalks, improved lighting, and signing and pavement markings among the tools cities can use to improve crosswalk visibility.
No further details about Tuesday's crash on Stow Street, including the child's condition or what led to the collision, had been released as of the Waltham Times report.
