Northborough, MA (July 15, 2026) – A wrong-way driver struck four vehicles and a tractor-trailer on westbound I-290 near Whitney St in Northborough Tuesday night, triggering a multi-vehicle crash that temporarily shut down the highway. Emergency units were called to the scene at approximately 10:30 p.m. on July 14.
Three people were taken to a hospital with minor injuries. The suspect did not remain at the scene after the crashes but was later identified by investigators. No word on arrests had been released at the time of this report. I-290 was fully closed following the wreck and reopened just before midnight. The accident remains under investigation.
We hope the three people hurt make quick and full recoveries.
What Makes Wrong-Way Drivers on Interstate Highways So Difficult to Stop in Time?
A wrong-way driver on an interstate creates an almost impossible situation for oncoming motorists. Vehicles approaching each other on a divided highway are closing at a combined speed that can exceed 120 miles per hour, leaving drivers with less than two seconds to react once a wrong-way vehicle comes into view. At night, when headlights from a wrong-way car may initially be mistaken for a vehicle in a passing lane on the other side of the median, that reaction window shrinks even further.
Interstate highways are designed with one-way entry ramps and signage specifically intended to prevent wrong-way entries, but these measures are not foolproof. A driver who is impaired, disoriented, or unfamiliar with the interchange may enter from an exit ramp despite the posted warnings. Once on the highway traveling in the wrong direction, the driver may not immediately recognize the danger, or may be too impaired to respond to it, while oncoming drivers have almost no time to identify and avoid the threat.
When a wrong-way driver strikes multiple vehicles in sequence, as occurred on I-290, each successive collision can push vehicles into additional lanes or cause them to stop in positions that create further hazards for traffic behind them. The combination of a moving wrong-way vehicle, multiple disabled cars scattered across lanes, and approaching traffic that has no warning of what lies ahead can turn a single wrong-way entry into a cascading series of crashes before anyone can intervene.
