Winter Roads in Yamaguchi: 6 National Road Sections Closed Early for Snow, and How to Check Conditions (2026)

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Yamaguchi Prefecture is often thought of as a place with little snow. Even so, cold waves have closed National Route 2 and the Chugoku and Sanyo Expressways, and left vehicles stuck. This guide covers the six national road sections that the national government closes early for heavy snow, the expressway closures of February 2026, and the screens and phone numbers you can use to check roads before you leave. It is for residents who drive between cities and for visitors who rent a car.

Three terms you will see. A winter-tire requirement (冬用タイヤ等の装着) means you may drive with winter tires or with chains or other anti-slip gear. A chain requirement (チェーン規制) means only vehicles with chains may pass. A preventive closure section (予防的通行規制区間) is a stretch of national road that the national government closes before cars get stuck, so crews can clear snow in one go.

In short

Yamaguchi has six preventive closure sections on national roads: three on National Route 2, two on Route 9 and one on Route 191 (section 2).
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) lists no chain-requirement section in Yamaguchi. In heavy snow, a road can still close regardless of your tires (section 1).
On February 8, 2026, four stretches of the Chugoku and Sanyo Expressways closed on the same day (section 3).
Driving on snow or ice with normal tires is against the law. Put on winter tires early and carry chains (sections 1 and 4).
Check the road before you go on the screens in section 5. The prefecture’s winter road information runs only from December 1 to March 31.

Checked with official pages on October 12, 2026.

1. What is the difference between a winter-tire requirement and a chain requirement?

Official rule (Japan)

On a chain-requirement section, a car without chains cannot pass, even with studless tires. Under an ordinary snow “winter tires or equivalent” requirement, you can drive with either winter tires or chains.

Rule	Who can pass	In Yamaguchi
Winter tires or equivalent (冬用タイヤ等の装着)	Cars with winter tires, or with chains or other anti-slip gear	Issued on expressways and other roads depending on snowfall
Chain requirement (チェーン規制)	Only cars with chains (4WD and studless tires too)	No designated section in the prefecture

MLIT lists three chain-requirement roads in the Chugoku region: the Akana Pass on National Route 54, the Yubara IC to Kofu IC stretch of the Yonago Expressway, and the Oasa IC to Asahi IC stretch of the Hamada Expressway. No road in Yamaguchi, and neither the Chugoku nor the Sanyo Expressway, is on the list. A chain requirement is used only in exceptional snowfall, such as when a special heavy-snow warning or an emergency heavy-snow announcement is issued. Metal, urethane, rubber and cloth chains are allowed. Spray-on products are not. About chain requirements (MLIT, Japanese)

On iHighway, a map service for expressways, chain requirements are shown in dark pink and winter-tire requirements in blue. The required gear differs by prefecture, because each prefectural public safety commission decides it, so check the rule for the prefecture you are driving in. Snow driving advice (iHighway, Japanese)

NEXCO West Japan, the expressway operator, says winter tires are tires marked “studless” or with the snowflake mark, and asks you to fit them on all wheels. It also asks you to check tread wear and to carry chains in case of need. Winter driving safety (NEXCO West Japan, Japanese)

2. Which six national road sections close early in Yamaguchi?

National roads managed by MLIT

MLIT’s fiscal 2025 list names six preventive closure sections in Yamaguchi: Otoge, Tsubaki Pass and Yoshimi Pass on Route 2, Kidoyama Pass and the Tsuwano area on Route 9, and Shiinoki Pass on Route 191. These are places where large vehicles tend to get stuck in heavy snow. The government closes them before vehicles stop and clears the snow intensively.

Section	Road	City	Length
Otoge	Route 2	Iwakuni (Shuto) to Shunan	5.4 km
Tsubaki Pass	Route 2	Shunan to Hofu	4.2 km
Yoshimi Pass	Route 2	Ube to Sanyo-Onoda	11.4 km
Kidoyama Pass	Route 9	Yamaguchi City (Miyanokami)	4.3 km
Tsuwano area	Route 9	Tsuwano (Shimane) to Yamaguchi City (Ato)	20.3 km
Shiinoki Pass	Route 191	Nagato	2 km

The Tsuwano area is handled by the Hamada office on the Shimane side. The other five are handled by the Yamaguchi River and National Highway Office. The official start and end points (district names in Japanese, for map searches) are: Otoge, 周東町西長野 in Iwakuni to 原 in Shunan; Tsubaki Pass, 戸田 in Shunan to 富海 in Hofu; Yoshimi Pass, 瓜生野 in Ube to 郡 in Sanyo-Onoda; Shiinoki Pass, 日置上 to 西深川, both in Nagato. Fiscal 2025 preventive closure sections (MLIT, Japanese PDF)

When Otoge is closed, the Yamaguchi office said in its January 13, 2023 newsletter that it may ask drivers to take a wide detour via National Route 188. Iwakoku Dayori vol. 26 (Yamaguchi River and National Highway Office, Japanese PDF)

The same office’s newsletter of February 9, 2023 names Kidoyama Pass and the Ato area of Route 9 in Yamaguchi City as places where crews worked around the clock to clear snow and prevent ice during the January 2023 cold wave. Yamaiji Dayori vol. 27 (Yamaguchi River and National Highway Office, Japanese PDF)

3. Can the expressways close across the prefecture at once?

NEXCO West Japan

In the heavy snow of February 8, 2026, the Chugoku Expressway between Takata IC and Yamaguchi IC and between Yamaguchi IC and Ozuki IC, and the Sanyo Expressway between Iwakuni IC and Yamaguchi JCT and between Habu IC and Shimonoseki JCT, all closed on the same day. This is from an announcement by the Chugoku Regional Development Bureau as of 15:00 that day.

大雪の影響による山陽道の通行止めにより、国道２号岩国市内が混雑しています。引き続き、最新の気象情報及び交通情報等に留意して下さい。#大雪 #通行止め #道路情報 #気象情報 pic.twitter.com/XBCJsEqyf6
— 国土交通省山口河川国道事務所 (@mlit_yamaguchi) February 8, 2026

National Route 2 in Iwakuni, congested after the Sanyo Expressway closed on February 8, 2026: a road camera image (Yamaguchi River and National Highway Office official X account, in Japanese)

The announcement says that driving on snowy or icy roads with normal tires breaks the law. It asks drivers to fit winter tires, carry chains and put them on early. It also asks people to consider changing plans, because local roads get crowded when an expressway closes. Closures due to heavy snow (Chugoku Regional Development Bureau, February 8, 2026, Japanese PDF)

If you do not have the right gear on an expressway, you have to leave at the nearest interchange for local roads. iHighway asks you to fit chains at a chain-fitting area, service area or parking area, and not to put them on or take them off on the road shoulder. Snow and ice FAQ (iHighway, Japanese)

4. Can cars get stuck on flat roads too?

Official rule (Japan)

Around 00:30 on February 8, 2025, a large trailer without winter tires got stuck in snow on National Route 2 in Sanyo-Onoda, and a traffic jam of about 5.0 km formed. In its announcement of February 10, the Chugoku Regional Development Bureau said that going out on normal tires in snowy or icy weather can cause serious jams, stuck vehicles and road closures. Request to fit winter tires (Chugoku Regional Development Bureau, February 10, 2025, Japanese PDF)

The Shimonoseki national road office’s newsletter of December 19, 2025 also says that driving on snowy or icy roads with normal tires is against the law and can be punished. It asks drivers to fit winter tires early and carry chains. Shimonoseki Dayori vol. 46 (Yamaguchi River and National Highway Office, Japanese PDF)

5. Where can I check road conditions and closures before I leave?

Depends on the road manager

Check national roads on the Yamaguchi office’s road surface page, and roads managed by the prefecture on Yamaguchi Prefecture’s road map “Doro Mieru Navi” (道路見えるナビ). Each road manager has its own screen. All the screens below are in Japanese.

The Yamaguchi River and National Highway Office’s road surface information page shows air temperature, road surface temperature and surface condition (such as “dry”) at observation points including Kusari Pass, Tsuezaka, Ikumohigashibun, Tokusa, Yoshimi Pass and Tsubaki Pass. It updates every 10 minutes. For Routes 9 and 191 on the Shimane side, it points to camera images from the Hamada office.

Yamaguchi Prefecture’s Doro Mieru Navi moved to its current address on March 31, 2025. The map shows regulation information, prefecture-managed cameras and road surface conditions. Winter road information appears only from December 1 to March 31. For road questions, call the prefecture’s Road Maintenance Division at 083-933-3666, on weekdays only.

National roads in one place: Road Information Provision System (MLIT)
Expressways: iHighway (NEXCO West Japan). NEXCO West Japan Customer Center: 0120-924-863 (from some phones, 06-6876-9031, paid call)
Effects of an expressway closure: Expressway Impact Information site (NEXCO East, Central and West Japan)
Local roads and expressways: Japan Road Traffic Information Center (JARTIC)
Snow forecast: Upcoming snow (Japan Meteorological Agency)
Live updates on X: Yamaguchi River and National Highway Office, iHighway traffic information (Chugoku) and Yamaguchi Prefecture Road Maintenance Division

Note

The prefecture’s winter road information starts on December 1. If a cold wave arrives in November, check the national road surface page and the official X accounts above. The prefecture’s road line answers only on weekdays.

6. What should I know about driving in Yamaguchi in winter?

Yamaguchi Prefecture

In Yamaguchi, roads that close for snow are not only mountain passes: three of the six sections are on National Route 2, which links the cities of the southern coast. If you drive between Iwakuni, Shunan, Hofu, Ube and Sanyo-Onoda, watch the snow forecast even on days when you are not heading to the mountains.

East-west travel in the prefecture runs along National Route 2, the Chugoku Expressway and the Sanyo Expressway, which are roughly parallel. When the expressways close across the prefecture, as on February 8, 2026, traffic moves to the parallel local roads. NEXCO West Japan says it may close an expressway in advance, or at the same time as the parallel national road, when heavy snow is forecast.

After fitting winter tires, check the tire marking (the “studless” mark or the snowflake mark) and the tread, and practice putting on your chains once. On a chain-requirement section, only chains that are actually fitted to the tires count.

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Common questions

Are there roads in Yamaguchi that I cannot use even with studless tires?

MLIT lists no chain-requirement road in Yamaguchi. However, preventive closure sections and other roads can close in heavy snow no matter what gear you have.

How do I find the detour when a road is closed by snow?

For Otoge on National Route 2, the Yamaguchi office says it may ask drivers to take a wide detour via National Route 188. For the detour at the time, check the “disaster detour information” (災害時迂回路情報) on Doro Mieru Navi and the announcements of each road manager.

Where do I report a road problem?

Call the Road Emergency Dial, #9910. It is a nationwide number, free and answered 24 hours a day. For roads managed by prefectures and other bodies, it may not be possible to respond quickly at night or on weekends and holidays. For an accident, call the police at 110. Road Emergency Dial (MLIT, Japanese)

Next steps

If you do not drive in winter, see the bus fares and passes in Local Buses in 5 Yamaguchi Cities (2026).
If you are a new resident, see Changing Your Address on a Yamaguchi Driver’s License.

Sources (checked October 2026)

13 pages we checked