What Vehicles Need Snow Chains

Keep your chains clean and oiled for a long, safe service life.

Snow chains and their less aggressive cousins, the "snow cable" and "snow boot," are designed to wrap around a vehicle's tires, giving it extra traction in icy conditions. While these devices do work well, they have limitations.

Regular Vehicles

Most drivers need snow chains only if roads are coated with ice and they expect to neither exceed 30 mph nor drive on dry pavement, either of which may cause a chain to break and damage the vehicle.

Construction/Logging Equipment

Many vehicles that operate solely off-road and in inclement conditions use chains on a semi-permanent basis, even in the summer. Such applications include bulldozers, cranes, point-to-point logging trucks and tow trucks.

State CMV Requirements

In California and Nevada, all commercial motor vehicles are required to carry a set of "display" chains when entering any signed, restricted area where they may be needed. Massachusetts requires that drivers hauling three trailers carry one set of chains per driving wheel between Oct. 15 and May 1. Pennsylvania requires that drivers use them when on emergency routes covered in ice.

References

• Trucker News: Snow Chain Basics
• Caifornia Department of Transportation: Chain Requirements
• WItruck: Chain Requirements by State