Stacked (i.e., hierarchically arranged) rate wheels schedule traffic flows in a network. A first rate wheel operates to efficiently schedule traffic flows in which traffic shaping parameters may be applied to individual traffic flows. A second rate wheel schedules group of the traffic flows in which traffic shaping parameters may be applied at the group level. In the context of an ATM network, the first rate wheel may operate at the virtual circuit level and the second rate wheel may operate at the virtual path level.