SUZHOU has pledged to help local residents solve their difficulties finding taxis by teaming up with Shanghai's two "taxi giants". According to Suzhou Vice-Mayor Jiang Renjie, the city will add 800 taxis to ease the shortage of cabs. At present, the city has 2,408 taxis to carry from 120,000 to 190,000 passengers every day.

"But they have failed to meet the growing demand," said Jiang.

Of the planned 800 new taxis, 680 have been put into operation with the help of Dazhong Transportation (Group) Co Ltd and Qiangsheng Company, he said.

Dazhong has set up a subsidiary in Suzhou, in collaboration with the Suzhou Investment Company, to manage its taxis. Its accounts for a 49 per cent share of the undertaking.

Dazhong won the operating rights for 200 taxis after the city held a nationwide auction with 11 companies involved, said Yang Guoping, president of Dazhong.

Another three Shanghai companies - Nonggongshang, Bashi and Jinjiang - failed in the auction.

The Suzhou Dazhong company is the 10th subsidiary Dazhong has launched in the Yangtze Delta as part of its business expansion in the region.

Shanghai now has little room for taxi companies to expand due to its traffic congestion. The city government has stopped issuing taxi licences.

The first 120 Dazhong taxis - 40 for 2.0 Passats and 80 for Santana 3000s - are now in service in Suzhou. The company will later increase its presence to 200 cabs.