North Shore State Trooper Death, Crash Spur MA Wrong-Way Driving Prevention Plan

PEABODY, MA — New wrong-way driver detection technology, upgraded signs and longer-term road changes at more than 500 high-risk locations across Massachusetts are coming in the wake of wrong-way crashes that killed one state trooper and sent another to the hospital on the North Shore in recent weeks.

Gov. Maura Healey announced the multi-year initiative following the wrong-way crash in Lynnfield that killed State Trooper Kevin Trainor, of Salem, on May 6, and a subsequent wrong-way crash that injured another state trooper weeks later in Peabody.

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The initiative will be carried out through a five-phase strategy that combines immediate safety improvements with longer-term infrastructure investments.

"We've seen firsthand the devastating impact that wrong-way driving crashes can have on families, law enforcement and communities across Massachusetts," Healey said. "People deserve to be safe on our roads, and we're taking action."

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MassDOT plans to retrofit existing signalized intersections and mainline camera systems with wrong-way detection technology at about 430 locations statewide. The technology will identify wrong-way movements and send real-time alerts to transportation officials and law enforcement.

The systems are also expected to connect with illuminated signs with flashing LEDs to warn drivers before they enter a highway in the wrong direction. Those installations are scheduled throughout 2026 and 2027.

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"Here on the North Shore, we have felt the impact of wrong-way drivers, and we welcome these important upgrades to prevent future tragedies statewide," State Rep. Hannah Bowen (D-Beverly) said. "This is the strategy we need to improve roadway safety — one that keeps pace with the changes we're already seeing in the vehicles we’re using, in drivers' behavior, and in available technology."

Trainor, a Salem High graduate and Salem State alumnus, was hailed as a hero for responding to reports of a wrong-way driver on Route 1 in Lynnfield at the end of his shift shortly after 2 a.m. — and was killed in a head-on collision minutes later.

"Far too many Massachusetts families have had their lives turned upside down from losing a loved one to a wrong-way driving collision," Salem Mayor Dominick Pangallo said. "The devastation these crashes have caused touches communities across our Commonwealth, Salem included. These safety upgrades on our roadways will, I hope, reduce the chances that any family or community will again need to experience the tragic impacts of one of these crashes."

MassDOT personnel are also making upgrades at highway ramps and interchanges across the state, including enhanced WRONG WAY and DO NOT ENTER signs, improved pavement markings, directional arrows and lighting improvements.

The state said it is also piloting next-generation detection technology at locations without existing infrastructure and using the data to identify places that may need larger roadway changes, including curb and island realignment, ramp reconfiguration and channelization enhancements.

"Horrific crashes caused by wrong-way drivers have claimed too many lives and caused too many injuries, and we in state government have a shared responsibility to act," State Rep. Sally Kerans (D-Danvers). "Danvers is among those communities where new signage to prevent wrong-way crashes is being installed. ... We will use every tool — and create new ones if necessary — to prevent further loss of life from wrong-way crashes on our roads."

State officials said MassDOT will continue evaluating roadway conditions and collecting data to identify more opportunities to reduce wrong-way driving incidents across Massachusetts.

"Our district has felt the cost of wrong-way driving in the most painful way, with the loss of Trooper Kevin Trainor and a second trooper struck on the same stretch of Route 1 weeks later," State Sen. Joan Lovely (D-Salem) said. "This plan reflects the prevention we fought for in the Senate's FY2027 budget, and I will keep pushing to bring these safety measures to corridors like Route 1 so other families are spared this grief."