The New York City Council voted on Thursday, October 22, to ban horse-drawn carriages, approving the measure by 40 votes to seven, with two abstentions. The ban takes effect on June 1, 2028, bringing to an end a tradition in and around Central Park that stretches back more than 150 years. The legislation, backed by Mayor Zohran Mamdani, is expected to be signed into law by the mayor.
What the bill does
The bill, formally titled “Romanch’s Law,” is named after Romanch Mahajan, an 18-year-old tourist from India who was killed on June 17 after being thrown from a carriage when the horse bolted. According to city officials, the driver had stepped away to take a photograph of the tourist’s family when the animal broke free. The accident intensified long-standing scrutiny of the carriage industry in the city.
The legislation requires the city to produce a workforce transition plan by April and calls for a compensation program for carriage operators to be considered. It also places restrictions on what can happen to the horses themselves: the animals may not be sold for slaughter or transferred to other carriage businesses. The measure was championed by Council Speaker Julie Menin, who said the vote marked the city’s commitment to animal welfare, public safety, and protecting workers in the industry.
The June 17 accident that gave the bill its name was a turning point in the debate. Romanch Mahajan, visiting from India with his family, was killed after he was thrown from a carriage when the horse bolted while the driver had stepped away to take a photograph of the family. The tragedy, combined with the collapse of the carriage horse Deniz in Central Park the same month, convinced a decisive majority of council members that the industry could not be reformed through regulation alone.
Supporters of the ban argued that horse-drawn carriages no longer have a place on the busy streets of Manhattan, where animals, vehicles, and crowds mix in conditions they described as dangerous for horses, drivers, and the public alike. Animal welfare advocates have campaigned against the industry for years, pointing to a series of incidents involving carriage horses in Central Park and the surrounding streets.
A 150-year tradition ends
Horse-drawn carriages have operated in Central Park since the 1800s, becoming one of the city’s most recognizable sights. The city capped carriage licenses at 68 by the mid-20th century, and today roughly 150 active drivers work with around 200 horses in the industry.
Calls to end the practice have grown in recent years. A carriage horse named Deniz collapsed in Central Park in June, an incident that drew renewed attention to the working conditions of the animals. Former mayors Bill de Blasio and Eric Adams also pushed for bans on the carriages during their time in office, but neither effort reached the point of a council vote. The vote on Thursday marks the first time a full ban has passed the council.
Reaction and what comes next
The industry has vowed to fight the ban in court. The Transport Workers Union, which represents carriage drivers and owners, said it would seek a temporary restraining order the moment the bill is enacted. TWU president John Samuelsen called the measure “theft,” arguing that it would destroy the livelihoods of drivers and owners who have worked in the industry for decades.
President Donald Trump also weighed in, writing on Truth Social that the carriages were a “great tradition” that “will be missed.” His comments echoed the views of supporters who see the carriages as a cherished part of New York’s identity and a fixture of the tourist experience in Central Park.
For now, the ban is on track to become law, but its implementation remains uncertain. The legislation leaves the city with significant homework: the transition plan due by April must address the future of the roughly 150 active drivers and around 200 horses currently in the trade, while the compensation program envisioned in the bill still has to be designed. The restriction on selling horses for slaughter or to other carriage businesses was included to answer a long-running concern of animal welfare groups about where the animals end up when cities shut down carriage trades. The city must develop a transition plan for workers by April, and the union’s promised legal challenge could delay or reshape how the measure takes effect. What is clear is that, for the first time in the city’s modern history, the days of the horse-drawn carriage in Central Park are numbered. If the law stands and takes effect on June 1, 2028, one of New York’s oldest traditions will come to an end after more than a century and a half.
