Why Is This Acushnet Church Sign a Magnet for Car Crashes?

Another day, another apparent accident at the Saint Francis Xavier Church sign in Acushnet.

For some apparent reason, this sign is like a magnet for cars.

"It's happened so many times over the years, it's hard to keep track," Acushnet Police Chief Gary Coppa said. "I've personally responded to multiple single-car accidents at the church sign."

Main Crash Offenders Are Out of Towners

Chief Coppa said most of the accidents that occur at the intersection of Main Street and South Main Street in town are caused by out-of-towners. "The latest reported accident was back in August," he said. "The driver was from Brockton and it was a hit-and-run."

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Why Do Most Crashes Happen at Night?

There's also a pattern with these accidents. They tend to happen at night. "I think they mostly happen at night because the traffic is so heavy during the daytime hours it would be hard to get the speed up to hit the sign," Coppa said.

Would Traffic Lights Make a Difference?

Coppa said that most of the incidents are also either OUI related or are caused by distracted driving, such as texting while driving. "There was talk about 10 or 15 years ago about installing some traffic lights at that intersection, but I'm not sure it would make much of a difference if you are driving under the influence and you're not familiar with the area," he said.

Latest Damage Went Unreported

As far as the latest damage to the traffic signs and guardrail in front of the church sign, Coppa said it looks worse than it originally was.

"It looks worse. It looks like someone hit it again," he said. "We weren't called about it, though, so we didn't respond to it. No one reported it."