The groups are asking a judge to halt the practice while a lawsuit comes to trial.
They claim Ringling's own train records show the animals are chained in box cars for an average of more than 26 straight hours, and often 60 to 70 hours at a time.
Feld Entertainment, the parent company of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Baily Circus, has argued that chaining the elephants during transport is necessary and legal.
But an attorney for the plaintiffs'says it's "not humane" for animals that live "to give a 12-minute performance."
