Guadalajara city councilors from the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) are demanding that citizens vote to decide the fate of the traditional horse-drawn carriages (calandrias) in the city center.
PRI councilors want a public referendum on whether the horses should be put out to pasture and the carriages replaced with motorized or electric vehicles.
A prototype of a diesel-fueled replacement vehicles was released recently and garnered mixed reactions. Although their design was praised, some critics said their introduction would be inconsistent with eco-friendly policies promoted by the municipality.
Local animal rights groups have long argued that making the horses pull the heavy wooden calandrias for hours on end is a form of abuse. Several documented and publicized cases of horses collapsing while at work have boosted their cause.