Cartagena’s iconic horse carriages give option to electrical buggies : NPR

[ad_1] <img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/3800x2533+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fc6%2F20%2Fdd1495404205834bef6c579d9923%2Fgettyimages-1164925262-1.jpg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/3800x2533+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fc6%2F20%2Fdd1495404205834bef6c579d9923%2Fgettyimages-1164925262-1.jpg" class="img" alt="In Cartagena’s Old City, horse-drawn buggies still clip-clop over colonial streets — but not for much longer." fetchpriority="high"/> In Cartagena's Outdated Metropolis, horse-drawn buggies nonetheless clip-clop over colonial streets — however not for for much longer. Jeffrey Greenberg/Common Pictures Group by way of Getty Pictures conceal caption

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Jeffrey Greenberg/Common Pictures Group by way of Getty Pictures CARTAGENA, Colombia — Cartagena sits on Colombia's Caribbean coast and for many years it has been one of many nation's most beloved locations.

Its historic heart is encircled by thick stone partitions, constructed by the Spaniards to fend off pirates. Inside, slender streets wind previous sun-drenched plazas and colonial mansions, a cityscape straight out of a film.

The town can also be well-known for the horse-drawn buggies that carry vacationers by way of its streets; their large-spoked wheels clattering over the pavement, and their open tops excellent for snapshots of Cartagena's attraction.

However quickly the romantic buggies can be outlawed by town authorities. Which desires to interchange them with electrical autos resulting from issues over animal welfare.

The transfer has angered horse cart house owners and traditionalists, pitting them towards animal rights activists and native officers who say there ought to be no place for horse carts in a metropolis that desires to painting itself as a world vacation spot.

"It is very unhappy," says Cristian Munoz, one in every of Cartagena's conventional horse cart drivers. "We're a part of this metropolis's heritage, just like the partitions that encompass it."

<img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/6157x4346+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fb9%2Fc0%2F83e50b7c4e0d80e3d3961c8984bf%2Fdriver.JPG" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/6157x4346+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fb9%2Fc0%2F83e50b7c4e0d80e3d3961c8984bf%2Fdriver.JPG" class="img" alt="Cristian Munoz has been driving horse buggies for the past two decades. He says the electric carts will do away with part of the city’s heritage." loading="lazy"/> Cristian Munoz has been driving horse buggies for the previous twenty years. He says the electrical carts will eliminate a part of town's heritage. Manuel Rueda/For NPR Information conceal caption

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Manuel Rueda/For NPR Information Vacationers within the UNESCO World Heritage Web site say that the horse carts are a enjoyable option to get round in Cartagena's sweltering warmth. And lots of admire the best way wherein drivers inform the colonial metropolis's historical past.

However animal rights activists have lengthy argued that these pleasure rides are horrible for the horses pulling the carriages, as a result of automobiles on town's roads stress out the horses. And the pavement injures horses' knees, and hurts their legs.

Fanny Pachon, an area animal rights activist, says that on a number of events, horses have collapsed from exhaustion.

"Horses are pack animals, they usually're designed to hold issues," she admits. "However they're meant to be in rural areas, not in the course of a metropolis with paved roads."

Alejandro Riaño, a well-liked comic from Bogota, has been lobbying Cartagena´s authorities to interchange the horse carts for the previous 4 years.

In 2021, he raised greater than 25,000 {dollars} on a crowd funding web site, to construct an electrical car that resembles a standard horse buggy, however runs with battery energy. The prototype was examined on town's streets two years in the past.

"We now have proven there's the know-how now to do issues otherwise" he mentioned.

After years of protests, town is lastly siding with Riaño and the animal rights activists.

On December 29, conventional horse-drawn buggies can be banned, and changed by a fleet of 62 electrical carriages imported from China, beneath a three way partnership between Cartagena's metropolis authorities and Corpoturismo, an company that promotes tourism within the metropolis.

<img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/6708x4129+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Faf%2F33%2F145aa46f42aca57087855238903c%2Fnew-electric-carts.JPG" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/6708x4129+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Faf%2F33%2F145aa46f42aca57087855238903c%2Fnew-electric-carts.JPG" class="img" alt="A worker fixes a wheel on one of the electric carriages that Cartagena’s municipal government has imported from China." loading="lazy"/> A employee fixes a wheel on one of many electrical carriages that Cartagena's municipal authorities has imported from China. Manuel Rueda/For NPR Information conceal caption

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Manuel Rueda/For NPR Information The brand new autos have large wheels and open tops, similar to the standard buggies. However they're powered by giant batteries that may final for about 70km (43 miles) on a single cost.

As an alternative of reins, there is a steering wheel on the entrance for the driving force. The brand new carts additionally include audio system that may very well be used to play music, or to duplicate the sound of a horse's gallop.

Liliana Rodriguez, Corpoturismo's director, says that this new fleet of carts might encourage different cities the place horse carriages are nonetheless in use.

She mentioned that Cartagena's carts may also be environmentally pleasant as a result of their batteries can be charged with solar energy.

"These are the sorts of adjustments that new generations are demanding," she mentioned.

The town is investing round 2 million {dollars} within the new fleet of electrical carts, and in a warehouse that's fitted with a photo voltaic powered charging station.

However the house owners of Cartagena's horse carriages are anxious.

They are saying that the municipal authorities is pushing them out of a enterprise they've spent many years constructing.

"We aren't towards a transition," mentioned Miguel Angel Cortez, the proprietor of two horse carts that make round $150 per day. "However we have to know the way we can be included."

Cart house owners mentioned they haven't gotten any presents in writing from town authorities. However they've been to conferences the place there was some speak of a $10,000 cost to compensate them for his or her carriages. Cart house owners say that may hardly compensate for his or her losses.

Cartagena's mayor Domek Turbay, accuses the cart house owners of "sabotaging" negotiations. He says that the municipal authorities is prepared to share the income of the brand new electrical autos with the horse cart house owners. However to date, there was no settlement between either side, and cart house owners have threatened to sue town authorities for leaving them out of labor.

"I get the sensation that they're attempting to make the most of the scenario," Mayor Turbay informed NPR information.

Turbay says that vacationers will be capable to journey on town's new electrical carts without spending a dime, for the following two months.

And a number of the carriage drivers — who presently work for cart house owners — admit that they'll apply for jobs driving the brand new electrical buggies.