New York City’s iconic horse-drawn carriages could disappear from Central Park under an agreement reached Tuesday between Mayor and City Council Speaker Julie Menin, setting the stage for a vote to eliminate the historic industry.
The agreement would ban horse-drawn carriage operations beginning June 1, 2028, if approved by the on Oct. 22, ending a longtime tourist attraction amid concerns over animal welfare and public safety.
The proposed legislation, known as Romanch’s Law â named after 18-year-old Romanch Mahajan, who suffered fatal injuries in a horse-drawn carriage crash in June â would require city officials to develop a transition plan for carriage drivers, owners and stable workers, though financial compensation would not be guaranteed.
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“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.
Animal rights group PETA celebrated the agreement after years of campaigning against the carriage industry.
“This is long overdue, and it can’t come quickly enough,” PETA representative Ashley Byrne told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview Tuesday.
Byrne cited incidents involving horses collapsing in city streets and colliding with vehicles, and said more than 70% of New Yorkers support a ban, a figure Fox News Digital has not independently verified.
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The Central Park Conservancy also welcomed the agreement, emphasizing public safety.
“We applaud the City Council for finally taking on this issue. For the Central Park Conservancy, this has always been a matter of public safety. We hope carriages can be phased out efficiently and humanely so that no one else ever suffers the fate of Romanch Mahajan,” Conservancy President and CEO Betsy Smith said.
But the Transport Workers Union sharply criticized the agreement, accusing city leaders of failing to provide meaningful financial protections for workers and carriage owners.
“Council Speaker Menin’s bill has no meaningful economic relief for workers,” TWU International President John Samuelsen said in a statement. “It only says the city should prepare a worker transition plan by April 2027 and include weak measures like job fairs and job counseling.”
Samuelsen also accused Menin of exploiting the June death of 18-year-old tourist Romanch Mahajan to advance the ban.
“Council Speaker Menin used the tragic death of a tourist to contrive a public safety crisis. This is disgraceful political opportunism, and Zohran should not simply go along with it, particularly when immigrant families’ livelihoods are being destroyed,” he said.
Under the legislation, city agencies would have until April 1, 2027, to develop a workforce transition plan that includes job placement, career counseling, training and referrals to other transportation and tourism jobs. Officials would also have to consider compensatio
