Difference Between Interstate and Intrastate

Interstate vs Intrastate

Interstate and intrastate are concepts that have great implications in business and transport. This is because of the fact that trucks that roam inside a state are governed by the laws of that state alone while intrastate trucks are allowed to go inside other states also thereby being governed by a different set of laws. The same applies to interstate and intrastate conflicts and interstate and intrastate businesses. Many people fail to appreciate the differences between these two concepts. This article attempts to highlight the differences between interstate and intrastate.


As the word implies, interstate means anything that involves more than a single state. There are carriers and transport companies that operate in several states and their trucks pass between many states. For this, these carriers have to obtain authorization from different states. Heb trucks that roam around various states are governed by the rules of the Department of Transportation and have to follow the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations. If a victim of road accident has been hit by an interstate truck, the compensation or the recovery is dependent upon the rules of DOT and not the laws of the state. If one is talking about interstate business, a company that is in one state provides its products and services to a customer in another state or several states.


Intrastate refers to anything that pertains to a single state and does not require crossing over the boundaries of a single state. Thus, carriers operating inside a single state are governed by the state laws and not the rules and regulations of the Department of Transportation. This has implications for unfortunate victims of road accidents as their compensation claim will depend upon state laws, if they are hit by an intrastate truck. Though DOT rules are not applied in case of intrastate movement, many states adopt DOT rules to make them as their own state laws. In the case of intrastate business, the company and its customers happen to be inside the same state.

What is the difference between Interstate and Intrastate?

• Intrastate refers to anything within a single state in the country whereas interstate refers to anything involving two or more states.

• In the case of intrastate transport, rules of the state apply whereas interstate movement of trucks requires authorization from al concerned states as well as application of rules of Department of Transportation.

• There is implication for business conflicts and carriers for interstate and intrastate parties.