The New York city council has voted to ban horse-drawn carriage rides in the city by 2028 in a decision that has widespread implications for hundreds of jobs.
The council voted on Thursday on Romanch’s Law, legislation named in memory of 18-year-old Romanch Mahajan, who died this summer after he was ejected from a runaway horse-drawn carriage in Central Park.
Under the measure, carriage operations will cease completely in June 2028. The legislation also called for a plan to help affected employees and business owners transition out of the industry in 2027.
Earlier on Thursday, the city council’s committee on health voted six-three in favor of the ban, clearing the way for the full council vote later in the day.
The final vote came just hours after workers and members of the Transport Workers Union (TWU) Local 100, which represents horse carriage drivers, gathered outside city hall in a last-minute push to stop the legislation.
Protesters called on lawmakers to either vote against the proposal or postpone the decision to allow further negotiations. They rallied and held signs decrying the vote, including one person who raised up an actual bag of horse poop in protest.
At the center of their objections is the uncertainty surrounding what happens to workers once the industry shuts down. Carriage operators maintain that their livelihoods are being taken away without a clearly established path forward.
John Samuelsen, president of TWU, told Spectrum NY it is “utterly false” that the bill includes real plans for retraining the workers. “There’s nothing concrete at all,” he said. “The language says consideration will be given. The language should not say that.”
The measure could also put dozens of carriage medallions in jeopardy, including those belonging to immigrant-run family enterprises that have been passed down through generations.
Industry advocates argue that the carriage trade has significant financial importance, saying operators conduct more than 100,000 rides each year and contribute to the city’s tourism sector.
Some carriage drivers expressed disappointment that Zohran Mamdani , the New York City mayor, who has championed himself as a voice for the working class and unions, would take a stand in favor of the ban.
One longtime driver, Conner McHugh, told Gothamist that the mayor “gets up on his podium and announces that he’s just shutting us all down, putting us out of business, doesn’t even talk to us”, adding, “I think this guy is as phoney as a $3 bill.”
McHugh, a second-generation driver, had previously told the Guardian that he feels there is an ongoing effort to drive people like him off land and buildings in Manhattan that coincides with the rezoning of the area where horse stables are located.
“Intimidation has taken various forms,” he said, including “reporting us to ICE and the IRS, keyboard warriors trashing us on social media, animals rights volunteers who have come to Central Park to harass our drivers and create an unsafe situation”.
But advocates pushing for the ban have repeatedly raised concerns over the years about the dangers associated with the rides and the risks to passengers and pedestrians, with those dangers gaining national attention after Mahajan’s death.
The treatment of the carriage horses has also been controversial. Animal welfare campaigners have questioned conditions in the industry, pointing to several horse deaths since 2020, including incidents in which animals collapsed while pulling carriages.
Before the decision, Donald Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform he is “so sad to see the beloved Central Park Horse-drawn Carriage Industry ending after over a Century, based largely on one tragic accident.
“When there is a car accident in the area, of which there are many, they don’t stop cars from entering the Park,” he wrote. “So why would they stop the Carriages? It was a Great Tradition. Another piece of History that’s gone. It will be missed!”
In a separate post, he added: “The Horse-drawn Carriage in New York City is a quintessential New York experience. So sad that, for political reasons, we will see it go!”
The Transport Workers Union had already informed city officials that it plans to pursue legal action in federal court if the legislation passed. Union officials maintain that the measure would unlawfully deprive carriage owners of their operating licenses, valuable medallions and businesses built over many years.
Thursday’s vote follows an agreement reached earlier this month between mayor Mamdani and the head of the city council to eliminate horse-drawn carriage rides across New York City.
Mamdani previously made clear that the administration intended to move ahead with ending the practice while addressing the consequences for those involved. “The horse carriage industry is coming to an end in New York City. Our administration will make sure workers and owners are protected and the horses are safe,” Mamdani wrote on X .
