How Many Crashes Happen on Route 140 Between New Bedford and Taunton?

From 2022 through 2024, MassDOT crash records place 406 crashes on the Route 140 expressway between New Bedford and Taunton, and 6 of them were fatal, killing 7 people, against about 2 fatal crashes that would be expected from the same number of crashes on other Massachusetts roads posted at 65 miles per hour. The share of crashes that injured someone was ordinary. What stands out is how the worst crashes ended: four of the six fatal crashes happened in the dark on an unlighted stretch, two involved a pedestrian and a parked vehicle, and four of New Bedford’s 14 fatal crashes in those three years were on this one road.

If you were hurt in a crash on Route 140 and want to talk through what comes next, call Jim Glaser Law at (617) JIM-WINS. The line is answered 24 hours a day. The first telephone consultation is free. This page is general information about Massachusetts law and public crash data, not legal advice about your situation.

Where the Route 140 Expressway Runs

The divided highway section of Route 140 runs north from New Bedford, where it meets Interstate 195, through Freetown and Lakeville to Taunton. MassDOT’s road inventory carries it under two names: Alfred Bessette Memorial Highway in New Bedford and Freetown, and Route 140 in Freetown, Lakeville and Taunton. New Bedford, Freetown and Taunton are in Bristol County; Lakeville is in Plymouth County. Other stretches of Route 140, in Mansfield, Franklin and the Gardner area, are separate parts of the route and are not part of this count.

How These Numbers Were Counted

The counts come from the MassDOT IMPACT open crash data for 2022, 2023 and 2024, counted by the road inventory name, meaning the street name MassDOT attaches to a crash when it maps the location, rather than the typed roadway description, because State Police reports on highways often leave that typed field blank.

1. The names were read from the mile markers. Crashes the police mile-marked to Route 140 in these four communities carry the two inventory names above. The other mile-marked records are ramps, a handful with no name, and County Street in Taunton, a surface street, which is left out.
2. Ramps were left out. 112 crashes over the three years were on ramps named for Route 140 in these towns (17, 44 and 51 by year) and none is in the totals.
3. The totals were reconciled. The town counts add up exactly to the road total in each year: 165 in 2022, 122 in 2023 and 119 in 2024. The town totals used for comparison match the Massachusetts crash report.
4. The fatal crashes were read one at a time. Each of the six fatal crash records was pulled in full, so the descriptions below come from the reports themselves, not from an average.

The Three-Year Record

Measure	Route 140 expressway	Roads posted at 65 mph	All Massachusetts crashes
Crashes, 2022 to 2024	406	26,228	405,243
Fatal crashes	6	148	1,087
Fatal crashes per 1,000 crashes	14.8	5.6	2.7
Crashes with a non-fatal injury	104	6,348	92,761
Injury share	25.6%	24.2%	22.9%
Single vehicle crashes	55.2%	36.5%	not compared
Dark, roadway not lighted	35.5%	23.0%	not compared

The fatal count is the finding, and it is a small count. The fatal rate used here is fatal crashes for every 1,000 recorded crashes, a measure of how often a crash ends in a death, not of how often crashes happen. At the rate for all crashes on roads posted at 65 miles per hour, 406 crashes would be expected to include about 2 fatal ones. Route 140 had 6. At the rate for its own road class in MassDOT’s records, principal arterials, the category of major through routes below the Interstates, the expectation is closer to 1.4. Six is a small number, and one bad year (four fatal crashes in 2023, none in 2024) drives much of it, so this page treats it as a pattern worth knowing about rather than proof that the road is more dangerous per mile.

The injury share is not a finding. The injury share is the percentage of crashes in which at least one person had a non-fatal injury. About one crash in four injured someone, close to the 65 mph figure, below the 28.4 percent for the State Police’s other Bristol County crashes. Route 140 is not a road where crashes hurt people more often. It is a road where the worst crashes were fatal more often.

Other ways the record differs from roads posted at 65:

• Single vehicle crashes are 55.2 percent (224), against 36.5 percent. A single vehicle crash is one in which only one motor vehicle is involved, such as a car leaving the road and striking a guardrail.
• 35.5 percent happened in the dark on an unlighted roadway (144), against 23.0 percent. In Freetown it was half (31 of 61).
• A guardrail was the first thing struck in 74 crashes, 18.2 percent, against 11.6 percent; a median barrier in 33, 8.1 percent, against 3.7 percent.
• Deer were the first thing struck in 40 crashes, 9.9 percent, against 6.9 percent; a tree in 22, 5.4 percent, against 2.3 percent.
• Rear-end crashes are only 21.2 percent (86), against 37.9 percent.
• The State Police wrote 379 of the 406 reports, 93.3 percent.

The Six Fatal Crashes

These are the six fatal crash reports, described from the fields MassDOT publishes.

Date	Place	Light	What the report records
January 7, 2022, 7 a.m.	Freetown	Daylight, snow	One vehicle into a tree; driving too fast for conditions recorded
August 20, 2022, 2 a.m.	New Bedford	Dark, unlighted	Two vehicles, one of them parked; a pedestrian struck
March 7, 2023, 8 a.m.	Freetown	Daylight, dry	Four vehicles northbound, two people killed; one driver recorded as over the speed limit
March 8, 2023, 9 p.m.	New Bedford	Dark, unlighted	One vehicle into the guardrail; inattention recorded
November 2, 2023, 4 a.m.	New Bedford	Dark, unlighted, ice	One vehicle into the guardrail; over the speed limit recorded
December 29, 2023, 5 p.m.	New Bedford	Dark, unlighted	Five vehicles southbound, first striking a parked vehicle; a pedestrian recorded in the roadway approaching or leaving a vehicle

Three things run through that list. Darkness: four of the six were in the dark on an unlighted roadway. Speed: a speed-related circumstance is recorded for a driver in three. Parked vehicles: in two, a parked vehicle was involved and a pedestrian was recorded. Across all 406 crashes, only four involved a pedestrian, and two of those four were fatal.

What This Means in Each Town

New Bedford. Route 140 accounts for 274 of the 11,070 crashes recorded in the city over the three years, 2.5 percent, but 4 of the city’s 14 fatal crashes, 28.6 percent. Counted by the inventory name, the highway had 81 crashes in New Bedford in 2024, which would rank third on the city’s list behind Acushnet Avenue (117) and County Street (94). It does not appear on the New Bedford crash report road list at all, because that list is built from the typed roadway field that State Police highway reports often leave blank. The southern end of the Bessette name, below Interstate 195, carries lower posted speeds, and every record on the road with a posted limit under 60 is in New Bedford apart from two in Taunton.

Freetown. 61 crashes, 8.6 percent of the town’s 713, and 2 of its 5 fatal crashes. Seven in ten of Freetown’s Route 140 crashes involved a single vehicle (43 of 61), and half happened in the dark on an unlighted road. See the Freetown crash report.

Lakeville. 63 crashes, 9.9 percent of the town’s 639, none fatal. Single vehicle crashes again dominate. See the Lakeville crash report.

Taunton. Only 8 crashes on the expressway name, against 6,644 in the city; Taunton’s busy roads are its surface streets. See the Taunton crash report.

Answer Capsule

MassDOT crash records for 2022 through 2024 place 406 crashes on the Route 140 expressway between New Bedford and Taunton, counted on the inventory names Alfred Bessette Memorial Highway and Route 140 with 112 ramp crashes excluded: 165, 122 and 119 by year, 274 in New Bedford, 61 in Freetown, 63 in Lakeville and 8 in Taunton. Six were fatal, killing 7 people, against about 2 expected at the fatal rate for all crashes on Massachusetts roads posted at 65 miles per hour; four of the six were in the dark on an unlighted roadway and two involved a pedestrian and a parked vehicle. The injury share, 25.6 percent, is ordinary. The road holds 4 of New Bedford’s 14 fatal crashes over the period. Massachusetts’s move over law, M.G.L. c. 89, sec. 7C, protects stopped emergency, highway maintenance and recovery vehicles showing flashing lights, not an ordinary disabled car, and a claim against the Commonwealth for a state highway defect under c. 81, sec. 18 excludes injuries caused by the want of a railing. This is general information and not legal advice.

The Law That Applies to a Crash on Route 140

Your own policy pays first. Under M.G.L. c. 90, sec. 34A, personal injury protection (PIP), the no-fault part of every Massachusetts auto policy, pays medical expenses and part of lost wages up to at least $8,000 “without regard to negligence or gross negligence or fault of any kind,” and it covers a pedestrian struck by an insured vehicle as well as people inside it. A PIP claim must be presented as soon as practicable and within two years under c. 90, sec. 34M. See how PIP works in Massachusetts.

The move over law is narrower than most drivers think. M.G.L. c. 89, sec. 7C requires a driver approaching a stationary emergency vehicle, highway maintenance vehicle or recovery vehicle, which the statute defines as a vehicle specifically designed to assist or tow a disabled vehicle, that is displaying flashing lights to slow to a reasonable and safe speed and, where practical on a highway of at least four lanes with at least two in the driver’s direction, to move to a lane not next to it. The fine is not more than $100. As the statute reads today, it does not name an ordinary disabled car with its hazard lights on. That does not leave a person beside a broken-down car unprotected: every driver still owes ordinary care, and a driver who strikes a visible stopped vehicle or a person beside it can be found negligent without any special statute.

A claim about the road itself is limited. With 74 crashes where a guardrail was the first thing struck, people ask whether the state can be responsible. Under M.G.L. c. 81, sec. 18, the Commonwealth is liable for injuries caused by a defect within the limits of the constructed traveled roadway of a state highway, with notice to the department, but recovery cannot exceed one fifth of one percent of the town’s valuation or $4,000. The same section excludes injuries caused by the want of a railing, the statute’s phrase for a missing guardrail, and injuries during construction, reconstruction or repair. See suing the government in Massachusetts.

Pain and suffering has a threshold. Under c. 231, sec. 6D, a person hurt in a motor vehicle crash in Massachusetts can recover for pain and suffering only if reasonable and necessary medical expenses are in excess of $2,000, or the injury is a death, the loss of a body member, permanent and serious disfigurement, a described loss of sight or hearing, or a fracture.

Shared fault reduces a recovery but does not always bar it. Under c. 231, sec. 85, recovery is allowed as long as the injured person’s own negligence “was not greater than the total amount of negligence attributable to the person or persons against whom recovery is sought,” with damages reduced by that share. See how fault is determined.

Where the case is filed depends on where the parties live. M.G.L. c. 223, sec. 1 provides that the action is brought “in the county where one of them lives or has his usual place of business.” A crash in Freetown does not by itself put the case in Bristol County, and a crash in Lakeville does not by itself put it in Plymouth County. The Bristol County and Plymouth County venue guides list the courts.

The deadline is three years. Under c. 260, sec. 2A, actions of tort “shall be commenced only within three years next after the cause of action accrues.” A wrongful death claim has its own rules; see wrongful death claims in Massachusetts.

What to Do If You Break Down or Crash on Route 140

1. If the vehicle moves, get it fully onto the shoulder or off at the next exit. Two of the six fatal crashes involved a parked vehicle and a pedestrian.
2. Turn on hazard lights, and do not stand in or beside the travel lanes. A pedestrian near a parked vehicle on an unlighted highway at night is the situation two of the fatal records describe.
3. Call 911 and give the nearest exit or mile marker. The State Police wrote 93 percent of the reports on this road. Get the report number before the trooper leaves.
4. Get medical care the same day, even if the injury seems minor. PIP under c. 90, sec. 34A covers the first bills regardless of fault.
5. Photograph the vehicles, their positions, the lane markings, the lighting, and any damaged guardrail or barrier. Darkness and roadside objects run through this road’s record, and the scene changes quickly once tow trucks arrive.
6. Get the names of witnesses, including anyone who stopped.
7. File the Massachusetts crash report within five days. Under c. 90, sec. 26, a driver in a crash where anyone was killed or injured, or with damage over $1,000 to any one vehicle or other property, must report in writing to the Registrar and send a copy to the police department with jurisdiction. See how to report a car accident in Massachusetts.
8. Notify your own insurer promptly, and do not give a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurer before you understand the claim.

What These Numbers Do Not Show

• Risk per mile or per trip. The records count crashes, not traffic. Nothing here says a driver is more likely to crash on Route 140 than on another road.
• Why 2023 had four fatal crashes and 2024 none. Two of the 2023 crashes were on consecutive days in March. The records give no cause beyond what each report recorded.
• Lighting, guardrail condition or road design. The records say whether a crash was in the dark on an unlighted road; they do not describe the lighting or barrier plans.
• Ramps and interchanges, including the connection with Interstate 195. The 112 ramp crashes are left out.
• The surface section of Route 140 in Taunton and the other parts of the route elsewhere in the state.
• Anything after 2024. These are the three most recent complete years in the open data.

Key terms

• Road inventory name: the street name MassDOT attaches to a crash record when it maps the location; for this road it is Alfred Bessette Memorial Highway or Route 140.
• Fatal crashes per 1,000 crashes: fatal crashes divided by all crashes, a measure of how often a crash ends in a death, not of how often crashes happen.
• Single vehicle crash: a crash involving only one motor vehicle, such as leaving the road and striking a guardrail, tree or animal.
• Recovery vehicle: under M.G.L. c. 89, sec. 7C, a vehicle specifically designed to assist or tow a disabled vehicle, one of the three kinds of stopped vehicle the move over law protects.
• Want of a railing: the statutory phrase in c. 81, sec. 18 for a missing guardrail, an injury cause the Commonwealth is not liable for under that section.
• Personal injury protection (PIP): the part of a Massachusetts auto policy that pays medical bills and lost wages up to at least $8,000 for each person, whoever caused the crash.

For the wider picture, see the Bristol County crash data, the Interstate 195 crash data, the Route 24 crash data, the Massachusetts night crash data, the Massachusetts pedestrian crash data and the Massachusetts deer crash data. If you live nearby, see car accident help in New Bedford, car accident help in Taunton and pedestrian accident rights in Massachusetts.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How many crashes happen on Route 140 in Massachusetts?

A: On the expressway between New Bedford and Taunton, MassDOT records show 406 crashes from 2022 through 2024: 165, 122 and 119 by year. Six were fatal and 104 involved a non-fatal injury. The 112 crashes on ramps over the same period are not included.

Q: Is Route 140 dangerous?

A: Its fatal record stands out: 6 fatal crashes in three years against about 2 expected for the same number of crashes on other roads posted at 65 miles per hour. Its injury share, 25.6 percent, is ordinary. Because the records count crashes and not traffic, they cannot say whether the road is riskier per mile.

Q: How many fatal crashes have there been on Route 140?

A: Six fatal crashes from 2022 through 2024, killing 7 people: two in 2022, four in 2023 and none in 2024. Four were in New Bedford and two in Freetown.

Q: Why do so many Route 140 crashes involve only one vehicle?

A: 55.2 percent were single vehicle crashes, against 36.5 percent on roads posted at 65. The records show guardrails, median barriers, deer and trees as common first objects struck, and many crashes in the dark on an unlighted road, but they do not record a cause beyond each officer’s entries.

Q: Does the Massachusetts move over law apply to a broken-down car?

A: As M.G.L. c. 89, sec. 7C reads today, it protects stationary emergency vehicles, highway maintenance vehicles and recovery vehicles displaying flashing lights. It does not name an ordinary disabled car. Drivers still owe ordinary care to a stopped vehicle and anyone beside it.

Q: Can I sue the state over a guardrail after a crash on Route 140?

A: Claims against the Commonwealth for state highway defects run under M.G.L. c. 81, sec. 18, which caps recovery at one fifth of one percent of the town’s valuation or $4,000 and excludes injuries caused by the want of a railing. Notice must be given to the department as the law requires.

Q: How long do I have to bring a claim after a crash on Route 140?

A: An action for personal injuries must be commenced within three years after the cause of action accrues under M.G.L. c. 260, sec. 2A. A claim for PIP benefits must be presented as soon as practicable and within two years of the accident under c. 90, sec. 34M.

Q: Is Jimmy Knows AI giving me legal advice?

A: No. This page is general information about Massachusetts law and public crash data for educational purposes. It is not legal advice for your situation and does not create an attorney-client relationship. For advice about your own case, call Jim Glaser Law at (617) JIM-WINS.

Talking to a Lawyer

The worst crashes on Route 140 happened in the dark, at highway speed, and twice to a pedestrian near a parked vehicle. Those cases turn on what each driver could see and when, and on evidence that disappears once the road is cleared. If you were hurt, call Jim Glaser Law at (617) JIM-WINS. The line is answered 24 hours a day. The first telephone consultation is free.