FedEx Corp. Chairman Frederick W. Smith is a persistent suitor. It took him more than two years of courting the Garrison family to convince them to sell him American Freightways, the company they founded in 1982.

FedEx Corp. Chairman Frederick W. Smith is a persistent suitor. It took him more than two years of courting the Garrison family - and a hefty premium price - to convince them to sell him American Freightways, the company they founded in 1982.

People with large incomes usually want things that come in large boxes, such as big screen televisions and huge pieces of furniture. Since the Postal Service can't handle such unwieldy items, customers are turning to less-than-truckload carriers to deliver the goods.

People with large incomes usually do not want to settle for small packages. They want big screen televisions, elaborate home office systems, complicated exercise machines and sprawling furniture.

Investment analysts say labor relations issues with the Teamsters union were a significant factor in the FedEx deal to buy American Freightways and operate it with Viking Freight as a nationwide less-than-truckload carrier.

Trucking’s earnings have returned to more normal levels this quarter after the approach of Y2K and fears of an electronic shutdown last fall led to panic-buying of trucking capacity by shippers worried about hoarding consumers and to spikes in carrier revenue.

Roberson Transportation Services has purchased Timberline Transport of Eastman, Ga., thereby increasing the size of Roberson by about one-fifth in terms of revenue.

Investment analysts say labor relations issues with the Teamsters union were a significant factor in the FedEx deal to buy American Freightways and operate it with Viking Freight as a nationwide less-than-truckload carrier.

FedEx Corp.’s $1.2 billion purchase of American Freightways Corp. will create a super-regional less-than-truckload carrier that both brings some consolidation to a sector of the industry and issues a fresh challenge to transportation powerhouse and rival United Parcel Service.

A probable change in the way the federal government counts non-driving hours worked could prod shippers into quicker processing of drivers and their freight at the nation’s loading docks, according to both a prominent federal transportation official and a major trucking executive.