Motor Carrier Act of 1935

The Act required common carriers by motor vehicle to obtain certificates of public convenience and necessity, and contract carriers to obtain permits, before operating interstate. Carriers had to file tariffs with the ICC and charge only published rates, and the ICC gained power to set safety rules and maximum hours of service for drivers, which first took effect in 1938. Its economic controls were largely dismantled by the Motor Carrier Act of 1980 and ended by the ICC Termination Act of 1995, while safety authority continues under FMCSA.

The 1935 Act explains features of trucking that persist decades after deregulation. Federal hours-of-service rules, the distinction between common and contract carriers, and the tariff habit in LTL pricing all began here. For example, many LTL carriers still publish class-based base rates and accessorial rules tariffs, and shippers negotiate discounts off those base rates rather than flat prices, a structure inherited from the ICC era. Knowing that history helps shippers read LTL quotes and understand why tariff terms apply unless a contract says otherwise.

• Less-Than-TruckloadLTLFreight that shares a trailer
• National Motor Freight ClassificationNMFCStandard that sets LTL freight classes

• Interstate Commerce Act of 18871887 · First US federal law regulating railroad rates
• Motor Carrier Act of 19801980 · Deregulated US trucking rates and market entry
• ICC Termination Act of 19951995, effective 1996 · Abolished the ICC and created the STB

1. Motor Carrier Act of 1935, Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org
2. Hours of service history, Supply Chain Digest scdigest.com