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Without small brokers serving the industry, independent truckers would be at the mercy of a small, powerful group of large property brokers to secure their loads on the backhaul.

In an unusual display of unity, the Transportation Intermediaries Association has joined forces with the two largest trucking trade associations to support anti-fraud legislation that would raise the freight broker surety requirement to $100,000 and require separate broker and carrier licenses.

The Transportation Intermediaries Association is pressing the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to shut down more companies that fail to provide adequate funds to reimburse fleets when brokers fail to pay carriers.

As the recession appears to be waning and freight shipments increase, trucking-related firms such as the Allen Lund Cos. say they are seeing a shift in the loads-procurement marketplace, while others — including Con-way’s brokerage unit — are turning to new technological formats to find cargo in need of transportation.

TransCore Holdings, a major electronic load board operator, reported a tripling of activity across its U.S.-Canadian network in May, calling it the busiest May the company has seen in 10 years.

A pair of U.S. senators introduced legislation last week aimed at curbing fraud by unscrupulous freight brokers.

A pair of Senators introduced legislation Tuesday aimed at curbing the fraud by unscrupulous freight brokers.

By now, everyone involved in trucking has experienced in some way a shortage of truck availability — and we’re only in the beginning of the second quarter. Transport Topics’ April 26 issue had a front-page story on fleet failures that quoted some interesting statistics: More than 7,100 carriers have been lost since the middle of 2008, with 730 failing during the first quarter of 2010.    

I noticed a letter in the April 26 issue where the writer was protesting the move to raise the property broker bond from the laughable $10,000 to a more responsible amount of at least $100,000.

TUCSON, Ariz. — Brokers attending the 2010 Transportation Intermediaries Association convention and trade show here were warned to beware of financial services firms that allow them to skirt federal requirements that they post a $10,000 surety bond.