Salang tunnel and pass in winter: closures, chains and how to check

Photo: Scott L. Sorensen / mawg64 · CC BY 3.0

What the Salang is

The Salang tunnel is about 2.67 kilometres long and lies at about 3,400 metres. Soviet engineers built it, finishing in 1964. The pass above it is higher, at 3,878 metres, and the tunnel lets vehicles go under it. It links Kabul and Charikar in the south with Mazar-i-Sharif and Kunduz in the north, and at least nine northern provinces depend on this road. Before it, the way north over the Shibar pass took three days.

It was built for about 1,000 vehicles a day, and by 2010 some 16,000 used it. Major reconstruction work was reported in 2023.

How often it closes

It closes when snow, wind and poor visibility make the road unsafe. Recent examples:

• 21 December 2025: closed by snow and storms, and reopened to passenger vehicles the next day (Afghanistan International, 22 December 2025).
• End of December 2025: closed around midnight on Monday, and by Thursday 1 January 2026 one lane had been cleared so stranded vehicles on both sides could move (Amu TV).
• January 2026: closed on a Wednesday morning and still shut on 26 January, six days later. Snow-clearing crews had done about 80 percent of their work, but new snow and the risk of avalanches kept it closed (The Kabul Tribune).

The Ministry of Public Works announces reopenings: it confirmed the one in December 2025, and its spokesman posted the one in January 2026 on X.

How to check before you go

1. Look at the snow forecast for the pass on the roads and passes page, which shows the snow on each pass now and for the next two days.
2. Ask drivers who have just come over the pass, and the people at the bus or taxi stand you are leaving from.
3. Look for the Ministry of Public Works' announcements, the source of the reopening news in the reports above.
4. Check the weather for Kabul and the north for the days you will travel. For other roads and times, see the distances between cities.

If you go

Photo: Scott L. Sorensen · CC BY 3.0

• Carry snow chains. When the pass reopened in December 2025, the ministry told people to carry chains, obey the traffic rules and follow the guidance given at the pass.
• Have food, water and warm clothes in the vehicle. Delays can be long, and in 2010 about 2,500 people were trapped in their vehicles.
• Do not set out when officials say to avoid the route. In January 2026 the ministry told drivers to strictly avoid travelling toward the Salang until further notice.

Avalanches on the Salang have killed many people. On 8 February 2010, at least 17 avalanches buried about 3.5 kilometres of the road, and 175 people died. If the road is closed, wait. Do not go round a barrier or follow other vehicles through it.

If it is closed

In the January 2026 closure, the Doshi to Bamyan highway stayed open for light vehicles with snow chains and extreme caution, according to the ministry's statement reported by The Kabul Tribune. That road has its own winter dangers, so check it too, and ask drivers on it before you set out.