NYC Council Votes to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages by 2028
New York City Council approved Romanch's Law in a 40-7 vote, phasing out horse-drawn carriages by June 2028 after the death of 18-year-old Romanch Mahajan in Central Park. Drivers threaten a federal lawsuit, and President Trump criticized the decision.
New York City will end its nearly 170-year-old horse-drawn carriage industry after the City Council voted 40-7 on Thursday to approve Romanch's Law, a bill that phases out the carriages by June 1, 2028. The measure, which now heads to Mayor Zohran Mamdani for his signature, follows the death of 18-year-old Romanch Mahajan, who was thrown from a runaway carriage in Central Park in June.
The legislation requires the Mamdani administration to develop a transition program for more than 150 active carriage drivers and other workers, offering job training, career counseling, and employment referrals. Financial compensation is not guaranteed, a point that drew objections from opponents who argued the city had failed to establish a concrete financial plan for drivers and carriage owners. An effort to delay the phaseout until January 2030 failed before the final vote.
The Transport Workers Union, which represents carriage industry workers, threatened to challenge the ban in federal court and seek a temporary restraining order. Union representatives accused City Council Speaker Julie Menin of failing to adequately consult drivers whose livelihoods are at stake. Menin defended the legislation at a news conference, saying the council had strengthened worker protections over the summer and was prepared for a legal fight. «We are very confident in defending this law and will vigorously defend it,» she said.
President Donald Trump weighed in on the decision Thursday, criticizing the move to eliminate one of New York City's longtime tourist attractions. «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!» he wrote on Truth Social.
The Central Park Conservancy celebrated the vote, arguing that horse-drawn carriages pose growing safety risks in a park that receives roughly 40 million visits annually. The organization said Mahajan's death was the ninth carriage-related incident in just over a year. «In the modern era, carriages pose a serious — and even fatal — safety risk to Park visitors, carriage drivers, and the horses themselves,» the Conservancy wrote in a press release. «Our hearts break for the family of Romanch Mahajan, who stepped into a carriage earlier this summer and never thought he might lose his life.»
Animal rights group PETA also celebrated the vote, pledging $50,000 to help carriage horses retire as the industry winds down. The legislation includes protections intended to prevent retired carriage horses from being sold for slaughter, while allowing owners to keep their animals.
Mamdani has expressed support for ending the industry. If signed, the law would bring an end to a decades-long political battle over one of New York City's most recognizable tourist attractions.
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