Chains required at Snoqualmie Pass as WSP enforces $500 fines
Jan 8, 2026, 9:39 AM
Glen Eck attempts to put chains on his tire while his car is stuck in a snow drift. (Photo: Jessica Kourkounis, Getty Images)
(Photo: Jessica Kourkounis, Getty Images)
If you’re headed to the passes, make sure to check for chain requirements.
The Washington State Patrol (WSP) is enforcing restrictions at Snoqualmie Pass, checking cars and trucks headed eastbound.
It’s a $500 fine if vehicles don’t comply with the chain requirements.
Here is a video of the Chain Enforcement operation EB 90 at MP 47. Make sure you are aware of the restrictions and follow them! They will be 100% enforced! pic.twitter.com/u1D9p1trZs
— Trooper Rick Johnson (@wspd2pio) January 8, 2026
When the “chains required” sign is active, even four-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive vehicles must have chains on. The state requires them on at least the two front or the two rear tires.
Studded tires don’t meet the chain requirements. Cars still need to chain up, if required.
“Officers and troopers will be doing chain enforcement,” Sergeant Rocky Oliphant, spokesperson for the WSP Commercial Vehicle Division, said. “If you do not have chains and you’re in a commercial vehicle, you will be pulled over, possibly ticketed, and for sure, turned around.”
Additionally, Oliphant provided a message for non-commercial drivers: Give those big rigs a lot of room. Don’t make sudden moves around them. Don’t be the reason for a truck losing control.
“Give semi trucks extra room,” he said. “A lot of things that we see, and this is something that I’ve tried to focus on a little bit more, is aggressive cars around trucks. Sometimes we have these aggressive cars. They cut off semi trucks. Those trucks don’t have as much space where they can stop.”
Contributing: Chris Sullivan, KIRO Newsradio
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