Abstract: A system and method for managing data traffic through a path that includes a transmission link having a transport rate that is subject to change with time. In one embodiment the data traffic is shaped to ATM Forum's available bit rate (ABR) category of service. ABR traffic has an integrated resource management (RM) cell that returns congestion related information to the source over a feedback path. With this congestion information the source end point is able to tailor its traffic send or transmission rate in order to accommodate or take advantage of any change in transport rate encountered by the traffic due to dynamically changing rate over the transmission link.