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Title 49, TransportationRelease 119-102

§11101 Common Carrier Transportation, Service, and Rates

Title 49 › SUBTITLE IV — INTERSTATE TRANSPORTATION › PART A — RAIL › CHAPTER 111 — OPERATIONS › SUBCHAPTER I — GENERAL REQUIREMENTS › § 11101

Last updated Aug 21, 2026|Official source

Summary

Railroad companies must provide transportation or service when someone reasonably asks for it. If the railroad has earlier, reasonable contract commitments, it can keep those first, but not if those commitments stop it from serving new reasonable requests. On request, a railroad must give anyone its rates and service terms quickly, either in writing or electronically. A railroad cannot raise common-carrier rates or change service terms until 20 days after it sends notice to anyone who, in the past 12 months, asked for those rates or arranged a shipment. For farm goods (including grain as defined in section 3 of the United States Grain Standards Act, 7 U.S.C. 75, and fertilizer), the railroad must publish and keep public its rates, schedules, and any changes. Railroads must follow the rates and terms they publish. The Board must make rules for these requirements and adopt final regulations by 180 days after January 1, 1996.

Full Legal Text

Title 49, §11101

Transportation, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)A rail carrier providing transportation or service subject to the jurisdiction of the Board under this part shall provide the transportation or service on reasonable request. A rail carrier shall not be found to have violated this section because it fulfills its reasonable commitments under contracts authorized under section 10709 of this title before responding to reasonable requests for service. Commitments which deprive a carrier of its ability to respond to reasonable requests for common carrier service are not reasonable.
(b)A rail carrier shall also provide to any person, on request, the carrier’s rates and other service terms. The response by a rail carrier to a request for the carrier’s rates and other service terms shall be—
(1)in writing and forwarded to the requesting person promptly after receipt of the request; or
(2)promptly made available in electronic form.
(c)A rail carrier may not increase any common carrier rates or change any common carrier service terms unless 20 days have expired after written or electronic notice is provided to any person who, within the previous 12 months—
(1)has requested such rates or terms under subsection (b); or
(2)has made arrangements with the carrier for a shipment that would be subject to such increased rates or changed terms.
(d)With respect to transportation of agricultural products, in addition to the requirements of subsections (a), (b), and (c), a rail carrier shall publish, make available, and retain for public inspection its common carrier rates, schedules of rates, and other service terms, and any proposed and actual changes to such rates and service terms. For purposes of this subsection, agricultural products shall include grain as defined in section 3 of the United States Grain Standards Act (7 U.S.C. 75) and all products thereof, and fertilizer.
(e)A rail carrier shall provide transportation or service in accordance with the rates and service terms, and any changes thereto, as published or otherwise made available under subsection (b), (c), or (d).
(f)The Board shall, by regulation, establish rules to implement this section. The regulations shall provide for immediate disclosure and dissemination of rates and service terms, including classifications, rules, and practices, and their effective dates. Final regulations shall be adopted by the Board not later than 180 days after January 1, 1996.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Prior Provisions

A prior section 11101, Pub. L. 95–473, Oct. 17, 1978, 92 Stat. 1419; Pub. L. 96–258, § 1(10), June 3, 1980, 94 Stat. 426; Pub. L. 96–448, title II, § 222, Oct. 14, 1980, 94 Stat. 1929; Pub. L. 99–521, § 9(a), Oct. 22, 1986, 100 Stat. 2997; Pub. L. 103–180, § 8, Dec. 3, 1993, 107 Stat. 2052, related to duties of carriers to provide transportation and service, prior to the general amendment of this subtitle by Pub. L. 104–88, § 102(a). See section 11101, 13710, 14101, and 15701 of this title.

Amendments

1996—Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 104–287 substituted “January 1, 1996” for “the

Effective Date

of the ICC Termination Act of 1995”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Section effective Jan. 1, 1996, except as otherwise provided in Pub. L. 104–88, see section 2 of Pub. L. 104–88, set out as a note under section 1301 of this title.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

49 U.S.C. § 11101

Title 49, Transportation

Last Updated

Aug 21, 2026

Release point: 119-102