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March 29, 2000 9:35 AM, EST

ORLANDO, Fla. — Freight brokers — the people who arrange for air, rail, ocean and truck transportation — have always walked a tightrope in their efforts to serve the needs of shippers and carriers.

Many trucking companies view brokers as unnecessary middlemen, skimming profits off loads and forcing truck rates lower. Shippers are wary because of the lack of control over freight-hauling assets and the fly-by-night nature of some brokerage operations.

But those attitudes are changing as distrust gives way to acceptance, and even respectability, in viewing the role of freight brokers. The shift hasn’t gone unnoticed by some members of the Transportation Intermediaries Association, a trade group that represents property brokers, freight forwarders and logistics management companies.

“The difference between trucks and brokerage is disappearing,” Robert D. Pulley, owner of Southland Express Group in Lawrenceburg, Tenn., said during a conversation at the group’s convention March 9 to 11.

For the full story, see the Mar. 27 print edition of Transport Topics. .