Nov. 19 – Washington state highway officials are bracing for a wetter, colder-than-normal winter. La Nina is expected to generate storms carrying 10% to 30% more precipitation than normal through Snoqualmie Pass.

The state Department of Transportation is getting ready to handle extra runoff and erosion on highway construction projects. It is also adding more trucks with plows and more snowblowers and graders.
The state will also try a new de-icing compound, CG-90, on highway passes. The liquid Magnesium chloride keeps snow and ice from bonding to the road surface, making it easier to plow, and reduces the need to sand.
The department is also trying to do better alerting drivers to problems. Along Interstate 90 over Snoqualmie pass, digital reader boards that display changes in speed limits and road conditions have been installed at every on ramp along a 40-mile stretch from North Bend to Easton.