More than 100 taxi drivers went on strike in a northwest China county on Sunday to urge the local government to curb illegal cabs.

The cabbies had gathered on a road in Tongren County, Huangnan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Qinghai Province since 8 a.m. They dispersed around 7 p.m. when it was getting dark.

A driver, who declined to give his name, said they staged the strike because of the local government's failure to curb the rampant illegal taxis.

"There are only 180 licensed taxis in Tongren, where the number of the unlicensed cabs exceeds 300," he said. "We have no other choice but to resort to the strike after our appeals failed to make any difference."

"I work from early morning till late night and only earn 100 yuan (15 U.S. dollars) every day," said another driver. "But the illegal cab drivers can earn more money at ease because they do not have to pay the register fees."

The county's transportation officials went to the scene and promised to launch a crackdown on illegal cabbies. But they failed to win trust from the drivers on strike, who said they would continue the strike if the local government failed to solve the problem.

(Xinhua News Agency February 16, 2009)